OperatorX
by Tgonthefiery
Summary: smile dot jpg. Amanda Reed took one look at that image, and her life was torn apart. But when a mysterious entity known as Slender Man offers to help her in exchange for her becoming his Proxy, she accepts. Now on the run from both the police and The Organisation, Amanda is forced to turn against former friends and allies, for the sake of her own survival.
1. Beware of the Trees

**I was bored. So I wrote this. Don't judge me.**

 **I needed a break from my FNaF Fics, I really did. So yeah, Operator X is going to be updated like the rest of my stories, along with another story of the Binding of Isaac fandom which will be coming soon.**

 **Enjoy, and leave a review if you have time!**

Chapter 1

Beware of the Trees

The dog sat on his haunches, panting as the clouds moved away, finally allowing the warm rays of sunlight to fall upon the edge of the forest. His dark brown coat shone in the sunlight as his tail wagged back and forth. His blood red eyes scanned the gravel path, waiting until he saw the one with the mark. The dog's eyes widened when he saw a figure approaching over the nearby hill; he wore a black cap, white T-shirt and blue shorts. He was whistling a tune as he jogged past the dog, who ignored him. That man didn't have the mark. He could pass.

Shortly afterwards, a young girl rode by on a pink bicycle, and the dog scowled. That one was also without the mark. He listened as the girl's squeals of joy slowly faded into the distance, his gaze never leaving the path. He'd sat here for two whole days, not eating, drinking or sleeping. Only watching. His head hadn't so much as tilted for all that time; it was his job to find the one with the mark, and he didn't intend to fail.

It was late in the afternoon; the sun was setting, painting the sky with beautiful shades of orange and purple. A figure was standing on top of the hill. And the dog barked excitedly as he saw the faint red glow coming off of the person, visible only to him. Whoever this person was, they had the mark. And the mark meant that their future was already predetermined. Yapping enthusiastically, he bolted out of the trees, his tongue hanging and drool dripping from his mouth.

It was a teenage girl who was now walking towards him; to the dog, she looked around fifteen. She wore a black hoodie and ripped jeans, though her hood was kept down, revealing the long brown hair that spilled all the way down to the small of her back. She looked at the dog with surprise as he bounded towards her, standing on his rear legs once he'd reached her.

"What's up?" She asked, stroking his back with a small smile creeping onto her face. "You know, you're the first dog who's ran towards me instead of away from me." The idea made the dog want to scoff as he playfully licked her hand. The girl knew how to pet him well; he found it hard to believe that other dogs would flee at the sight of her.

The dog suddenly realised _why_ exactly this girl had been given the mark; she was one of the sufferers, one of the victims of the world. From what she'd said, it was probably her parents. That was usually the case when it came to people like her. It was a common trend these days; one he despised, but hatefully accepted.

The girl rose with a sigh, and looked back behind the hill, at the blinking lights of the town.

"I think I should go back now." She muttered to herself. She smiled at the dog, patting him one last time before heading back down the hill. "Maybe I'll see you around." The dog didn't hesitate as he bounded back towards the woods, before looping around the hill in the direction of the town. The girl still hadn't made it down; he had time. Barking madly, the dog raced off into the distance, to find the marked girl's house. Now it was time for him to leave his own marking; the rest would be up to her.

 **xXx**

"Why were you out so late?!" Amanda flinched as her mother kicked the table. If the woman felt any pain from the action, she didn't show it.

"I told you that I was out for a walk." She pointed out in an attempt to make her mother see reason. But surprise, surprise, she wouldn't listen.

"You didn't tell me that you'd be gone for _five_ hours!" Her mother screamed, and Amanda backed away slowly. Her mother's anger usually subsided when she was further away.

"Yeah, okay, I didn't do _that_. I _did_ say I would be coming back late, though."

"That doesn't change anything!" Before Amanda knew what was going on, her mother had pushed her up against the wall. Her back hurt like hell, but she forced herself to keep a straight face. She couldn't afford to let herself cry. Tears just made everything worse.

"I told you to come back by three! Now it's six!" Her mother screeched, and slapped her on the cheek, causing her head to jerk to the left. "You're absolutely useless!" Amanda winced when she felt the nails digging into her arm, trying her best to hold back the tears.

She failed.

"What are you crying for?!"

 _Slap._

Suddenly her head was against the ground, her mother kicking her body as she closed her eyes and wept silently. She didn't scream. She didn't shout. She just lay there, as the torrent of kicks came over her body, over and over again.

"Oh, get up!" Amanda felt her mother grip her arm, before she was wrenched up to her feet and slammed against the table. "Alright, you little shit. Don't you dare _ever_ come back so late. You understand?" When she didn't answer, her mother forced her head onto the table, pulling her arm upwards until she screamed. "Do. You. Understand?!"

"Yes! Yes! I understand!" Amanda cried out, before her mother pulled up her arm a little higher.

"Who are you addressing?" Her voice was cold, and Amanda closed her eyes out of fear.

"Mum! Mum, I understand!" Suddenly her mother released her grip on her arm, and the limb fell onto the table as Amanda gasped in pain.

"Go to your room. Don't let me see you for the rest of the night. I have business to do." She rubbed her wrist, groaning as she heard her mother's footsteps fade away.

This was the way most days went. Amanda's mother got angry at the strangest things, from not brushing her teeth to not watering the flowers. Her family's priorities weren't exactly straight, that was for sure. Sighing, she straightened her body before heading to her room upstairs, her head still ringing. She spun the doorknob, slamming the door behind her and instantly falling face first onto her bed.

Amanda grabbed her pillow, hugging it close to her chest as she cried to herself, rocking slowly back and forth. At no point in her life had she ever thought of living as _easy_. Her life was like a roller coaster that never went up, only shooting down. Days felt like weeks, weeks, felt like months. While everyone else around her was always happy, she was the one who suffered from depression.

After a few minutes, she forced herself to stand up, shakily taking a few steps towards the full body mirror on the wall. Amanda pulled off her hoodie, revealing the navy blue tank top she was wearing beneath it, as well as a massive streak of blue running down her side; the new bruises she'd received from her beating. She poked them hesitantly, before gritting her teeth as pain shot through her body. She sighed, absentmindedly rubbing her cheek and sitting back down on her bed. Amanda could hear her mother's drunken yells from downstairs, probably directed towards her mug for having a tiny handle, or a nail in the floor on which she'd stood.

As she lay down on her back, she turned her head a little to the left, in order to look out the window. There was a tree branch which she had once used to climb out the window when she wanted to leave in the night; however, a bird's nest was now on top of it, and she'd since stopped using it. Amanda smiled as she saw the nest, in which lay two white eggs. The mother was there, wings stretched around them.

 _Ding!_

Amanda cursed as she heard the doorbell ring. Her mother hated it when people came to their door this late; usually they were just idiots attempting to sell something, but she still seemed to think they were scum. She heard the sound of the front door opening, but was surprised when her mother didn't shout at all. Instead there was just the tinkling of wind chimes, and then the door being abruptly closed.

Footsteps were thundering up the stairs, and Amanda sighed. Apparently her mother _did_ want to see her. The door was flung open, revealing her mother with her hair in a mess and a USB stick in her hand.

"Do you know what this is?" She asked, and Amanda sat up, giving her a shaky nod.

"It's a USB. Why?" She questioned. Her mother just scowled, before grabbing her by the ear and pulling her out of her room. "H-Hey!" She cried as she was tugged downstairs, trying her best to grab onto anything which might hold her back. "Let me go!"

The only response she got was a slap on the face, and she yelped as her mother dragged her into her office, seating her in the chair.

"Put it in. I don't know how to use it." Amanda gave her mother an _Are you kidding me_ look, but gulped when she received a glare in return, plugging the USB into the computer. She typed in her mother's password, _RNot2Day_ , and opened File Explorer, selecting the USB.

A single file was on it, called smile dot jpg.

"You found this outside?" She asked, and her mother snorted.

"Obviously. Come on, open it."

"It could be a virus." Amanda protested. "You have no idea what this could be."

"I told you, open the file." She sighed to herself, clicking the file and opening it.

Then all hell broke loose.

 **xXx**

The screams were what attracted the neighbours. Of course, Amanda's usual cries of pain were common at this time of night. It wasn't as if the police could charge her mother for domestic abuse, since there was no evidence apart from screams. But when _two_ shrill screams were piercing the air, it was obvious that something was wrong.

Miss Jones was the one who called the cops. It had become a habit of hers, every time she heard the screams. And every time, the police came out with nothing; but that didn't stop the woman from trying.

Chief Miller's car only pulled up after a good half hour. Hell, he hadn't even bothered to turn on the lights that he was supposed to use. As he pulled into the driveway of Amanda's house, the car jolted a little to the left, hitting the fence. He opened the door, looking at the damage he'd caused.

"Oops." He muttered, before turning around to look at the house. "Well, might as well get this over with." Miller had been to this house at least fifteen times, due to reports from Miss Jones. Every single time there had been little to no evidence of this reported domestic abuse, though he always found it suspicious that Amanda was hidden in her room whenever he came.

Sighing, the man walked up to the door and rapped against it with his right fist.

"Miss Reed? It's me again." To Miller's surprise, there was no reply. Usually by this time, there would be a yell, followed by a command for Amanda to go to her room, before her mother would open the door. But this time, there was none of that. "Miss Reed!" He knocked again, and to his frustration, there was still no reply. "Miss Reed, if you don't open up I'll be forced to kick down the door." Silence followed, and Miller gritted his teeth. Maybe this time, it was serious.

He pulled out his gun, and kicked at the door with his foot. The wooden frame split as the door was flung open, and he advanced forward, entering the kitchen. Most of the plates had been thrown onto the floor, and blood was splattered onto the table. Miller frowned, as his blood went cold. Maybe it was serious this time.

When he opened the door to the office, he froze. The computer had exploded, and shards of glass were scattered around the room. Amanda's mother lay on the ground, facing straight up with her eyes open. She was completely still; lifeless. But beside her, Amanda was the exact opposite. She was spasming wildly, her limbs contorted into positions which shouldn't have been possible. Her eyelids were jittering as her head snapped back and forth, with no clear pattern.

As Miller approached Amanda, he realised that she was whimpering a little, as tears poured from her eyes.

"Shit. God. Crap." He sputtered as he tried to keep her still. "Jesus girl, slow down. Slow-" He cursed and leapt backwards as Amanda's shadow seemed to move on its own. The darkness began to shift, as it began to leap about, reaching towards him. "What the fuck?" Miller had never seen anything like this. Amanda's sporadic breathing began to quicken, as the shadows began to grow out of control. "Shit!" He turned back, slamming the door shut.

"This is Miller. I'm going to need backup."

 **xXx**

That image, smile dot jpg. Amanda could still see it. That dog, staring at her, the beckoning hand in the bottom left of the frame. It wouldn't leave, wouldn't get out of her head. Even when she finally woke up in the hospital, all she could see was that stupid hand.

 _Permanent damage to the lungs…epileptic seizures…_

Amanda cried to herself as the image continued to haunt her, while the unknowing doctors continued to list all the things that the stupid image had done to her. Apparently, the computer had exploded; for that, she hardly cared. It was a pretty terrible one, anyway. The other thing she'd heard was that her mother was dead. For that, she thought _Good riddance_.

Amanda found it hard to believe that her mother had ever loved her. She'd fed her, kept her under her roof, for all of those years since her father had left, but never had she felt any sort of love for her. Not once.

 _It could be disastrous…added with her depression…_

The voices kept on drifting through, but Amanda wasn't paying much attention to them. She thought of , and only that. The dog and the hand, ominously reaching. It was funny; she only wanted to think of that, but whenever she did, it hurt her. Like a knife cutting through her skin. She was torturing herself _on purpose_.

"Ah, Miss Reed. You're awake." Amanda tilted her head as she heard Chief Miller's voice.

"Chief Miller?" She croaked wearily, as the hand entered her mind again. "I-I can't see you."

"What are you talking about? Your eyes are open." He sounded genuinely worried, and for that Amanda felt guilty, even if she hadn't exactly done anything wrong.

"I can only see the image. It's still there."

"What image?" He asked, intrigued.

"The one on the computer; smile dot jpg." Miller fell silent, and Amanda gulped. "Did it actually explode?"

"Yeah." He muttered quietly. "The computer exploded. Do you know how that happened?"

"No." She responded immediately. "Not really. I just opened the file-" She frowned, and rubbed her eyes. "Please tell me you found the USB."

"Yeah, we found it." Miller said as Amanda reopened her eyes, blinking at the light. "It was in perfect condition. Not burnt at all, even though the computer was in pieces. And it had that file on it, smile dot jpg. I've got men who are about to open it if you-"

"Don't open it." She interrupted, gripping his hand as her vision cleared. "I don't know what happened to me, okay? I have no clue. But that image is what did this to me. If you show it to _anyone_ , it's the end." Amanda pulled him a little closer, widening her eyes. "Promise me you won't show it to anyone." Miller gave her a small grunt to let her know that he understood, before stepping away from her hospital bed as she loosened her grip.

"You know, usually people don't answer my questions before I even ask them." He mused, as Amanda weakly sat up, leaning her back against the wall as she gasped for air. It was difficult for her to breathe, as whenever her lungs expanded, a bolt of pain would rip right through her body. "You're the first person to do that. It's either you're a mind reader, or something's up with that image. So do tell me, what exactly did you see before you started to spasm on the floor?"

"There…" Amanda gulped, absentmindedly rubbing her wrist before continuing. "…there was a dog. I don't know what breed, so don't ask. But it was staring at the camera, and it looked…like a human, or something. And it had these two teeth; god, those teeth. Human teeth, I think. But it was hard for me to tell, in that light. Uh, and then there was this hand in the bottom left. It was beckoning, or something. Reaching out – god, I can see it now."

"So, why did _that_ make you...you know." Miller questioned, as she shrugged in confusion. She brushed her bangs behind her ear, as she leaned forward a little.

"I have no clue." Amanda whispered quietly, before lying back down, groaning as she hit the bed too hard. "Fuck. But you…you need to destroy that USB, no matter what it takes. Mum found it outside; maybe you should put the word out there."

"Right. I'll do that." Miller made a noise that was probably the equivalent to a loud snort, before walking away to head out the door. "Take care of yourself, would you?" The door closed, and Amanda sighed. The lights were beginning to make her feel lightheaded, as her eyes slowly drifted closed, and in the hallway people exchanged words incomprehensible from this distance.

 _Go to sleep._

Her eyelids snapped back open, but they were closed as soon as they were lifted.

 _Go to sleep._

The world faded away, and the last thing she saw before blacking our was the hand, reaching out from the darkness, beckoning not to the dog, but to her.

 _Go to sleep._

 **xXx**

The dog raced through the trees, bounding over twigs and leaves, as the moon rose in the sky and the birds stopped chirping. It was exhilarating, but it was his only break from the job he carried out day and night. The master didn't like it when he didn't do his job; everything, including the timing, had to be perfect. Timing was one the dog's many specialties, but his most dominant field of expertise was fear. Like the fear instilled by the image on that USB, smile dot jpg. He'd used that so many times that he hardly even thought about it, but there was always that tiny bit of satisfaction whenever he placed a USB on another sad family's front doorstep.

When the dog reaches a clearing in the middle of the woods, he skidded to a halt, barking at the air as the clouds covered the moon. All of a sudden there was almost no light in the small clearing, except for the two fiery orbs which were the dog's eyes. The master liked the dark; he was always watching, and no one noticed him thanks to cold, dark shadows. Just the thought of the master stalking his victims was enough to make the dog yap in excitement. After all, he did very much admire his master.

"Smile. So good to see you again." The dog spun around as the being stepped out of the shadows. Everything he wore was black; his suit, tie, pants and shoes all sharing the dark hue. His skin, while perfect, was completely white, including his face. There were no eyes on his face, and neither was there a mouth or ears. It was like a blank canvas, waiting to be painted on.

"Master." Smile's voice was hoarse as he bowed his head down. "I have planted my mark on the girl. She will come to us."

"Good. I will admit, there are times I pity those with predetermined futures. No matter what they do, they can't change their fate. I'm curious as to what this girl's future is. Good, bad, in between? I suppose we'll just have to wait." Smile tipped his head back as he roared with laughter, before abruptly stopping and lowering his head again.

"Isn't it funny? We know that those who are marked have their futures predetermined, and yet there is no way to see what they are. We might as well just assume they're like everyone else."

"The difference, Smile, is that anything that happens to people like them are meant to be. There are no accidents. No bad luck. There is only fate, and to be completely honest, I like that idea."

"They probably don't." Smile muttered, as he looked at the shadows behind the tall man. A single black tentacle was slithering out from the darkness, leaving behind a trail of black ooze. The dog softly prodded the appendage with his paw, and suddenly the man jerked forwards, as the tendril was whipped back. Four tentacles burst out of his back, poised menacingly as if they could easily impale him.

" _Don't touch me."_ The tall man hissed threateningly, and Smile took a few small steps back.

"My apologies. I'll be off, then. The clouds have almost cleared." Without another word, the dog bounded off into the darkness, as the tall man looked up at the sky.

"So they have." He mused quietly, turning around and walking into the trees. The tentacles retracted into his back as he ambled forward, straightening his back. Then all of a sudden the crunching of his footsteps was gone, and the woods were silent yet again.

 **xXx**

Amanda jolted awake as she felt her body being pressed down. She made an attempt to move her arms, but found that her entire body was restrained by something pressing down onto her. Her eyes fluttered open as her body was forced backwards, and gasped for breath.

"What the-" she attempted to yell, but before she could react a hand was squeezing her throat, preventing her from breathing. She clawed at her throat, as she looked up and saw the face of the man on top of her. He was young, maybe in his twenties, with a wild look in his blue eyes. Messy blonde hair peeled over the edge of his head as he gave her a sadistic grin.

"Hey there, baby." He laughed, and Amanda shuddered when she realises he was reaching between her legs. "Sh. It'll all be over soon."

"L-Let m-e go." She choked on her words, as his hand continued to squeeze around her throat. "I-I can't-t…" Suddenly he loosened his grip, and she gasped as her airflow was unblocked.

"Sorry, darling. Can't have you screamin'. I'm sure you understand." Amanda jerked as she felt him pushing himself at – no, _into_ her, and cried out in pain.

"Stop it! Stop it!" She wailed at him, trying her best to push him off of her, but to no avail. "Fucking get off-" His hand tightened around her throat again, and she gagged.

"I believe I did tell you to be quiet." He whispered softly, and Amanda widened her eyes. She could hardly believe this was actually happening. She was lying in a hospital bed near death, being raped by a man who was probably her doctor. It was too bizarre a scene for her to comprehend. She gripped the railing of her bed, and forced her knee into his stomach.

Groaning, the man fell backwards, clutching his stomach as Amanda sat up, and sent her foot smashing down onto his face.

"G-Get the f-fuck away from me!" She stuttered as the man attempted to grab at her. She pulled down her hospital gown before launching herself at him and knocking him down.

"Argh! Bitch!" He easily shoved her to the side, before forcing himself back on top of her. "Come on, it's all right. Everything's alright." He rubbed his hand against her thighs, and Amanda squeezed her eyes shut. "Just smile."

 _Smile._

Her eyes flickered open, as the dog came back to her, his flaming eyes staring into her and his two human-like teeth jutting out of his mouth.

 _Smile._

Screaming in anger, Amanda pushed the man back, shoving him up against the wall. He groaned in pain as he hit the white plaster, a black spider web of cracks forming where he'd made contact with the wall. Her shadow began to contort, and rise up behind her like some sort of wraith. The man widened his eyes as the shadow grew a tentacle, which snaked through the air towards him.

"You really shouldn't have done that." She whispered, as she tightened her grip around his through. "You _really_ shouldn't have. It made me mad." The shadow jabbed forward, penetrating the man's flash and invading is body. Amanda laughed as he screamed, and dark spittle oozed from his mouth. His pupils began to dilate until the whites of his eyes were no longer visible, before his head snapped backwards as the tendril broke his neck. His legs went limp as she withdrew the tendril, and watched the now lifeless body of the rapist to the ground. She breathed heavily, her chest heaving as she smiled to herself.

"What the hell is going on?!" Amanda whipped her head to the left, suddenly feeling sick. She clutched the side of the bed, before lurching forward. The black ooze dripped out from her mouth, and she stared in shock as it hit the floor, causing it to sizzle. Her shadow reverted to normal, and she gasped for air, her breath uneven.

Amanda looked towards the door to see a doctor standing there, a look of pure horror on his face. Without hesitation, she pushed past him and stumbled into the hallway, gagging on the smell of the black ooze. Visitors staggered away from her as she ran forward, with no clear goal in mind apart from to get away from the corpse. She smashed into the reception desk, accidentally placing her fist into the computer.

Choking violently as her lungs contracted, Amanda rushed to the elevators, clicking the down arrow over and over again as the terrified receptionist made a call on the phone, probably for security. Panicking as the elevator opened, Amanda grabbed the confused boy inside and threw him out before pressing G. As the doors closed, she could hear frantic yells and the heavy thunder of footsteps before the lift began to move downwards.

Stumbling backwards she grasped the rail, and slowly sank to the ground. She'd done it; she'd killed that man. That stupid, fucking rapist. But she didn't feel happy about it. Instead, she was disgusted at herself. Amanda had seen it; her shadow, acting like it had a conscious, as it formed that tentacle and impaled that man through the chest. How had she done that? She'd heard what the doctors had said; her lungs had been severely damaged, but that should have been it. Why was her shadow acting up all of a sudden?

Shaking her head, Amanda rose as the doors of the lift opened, and she rushed through the lobby, desperate to escape the building. Uniformed men were standing near the doorway, and her heartrate picked up as she sprinted for the glass doors.

"Hey!" As she burst outside, a man grabbed her arm. She ripped it away, snarling at him and spitting a glob of ooze, which fell onto a patch of grass.

Amanda could hear sirens as she ran barefoot, stumbling as she ran down the hill. There were men converging on her from almost every direction. The only clear path was the woods; it was her best shot. Taking a deep breath, she sprinted for the trees, ignoring the angry shouts of men behind her as she reached the tree line. Stumbling and cursing she made her way through the woods, cutting her feet on jagged rocks and sharpened branches as above the moon shone and behind her men yelled.

Up ahead Amanda could see a clearing in the woods, and she raced forwards, heart pounding. Somehow, she could tell that if she made it to the clearing, she'd be safe, at least for now. Something about the moon shining down onto that one patch of land made her heart skip a beat as she broke through, landing on the ground of the clearing.

But the men didn't stop. They continued to run forward, ripping their clothes on piles of bracken and screaming as they charged. Maybe she'd been wrong. Perhaps this had been a hopeless escape attempt from the very beginning. Amanda felt something drip down her face as the man approached, and rubbed at her cheek and looked at her finger. The tears that were running down her face weren't made of water; they were consisted of the black ooze she'd been vomiting earlier.

She closed her eyes as the men entered the clearing, pointing their rifles at her.

"God, you led us on quite a run." The leader panted, as he stepped forward. "Amanda Reed, I'm arresting you on the charges of-" before he could finish, a massive tentacle impaled him through the back, causing a massive amount of blood to spurt from the front of his chest. He looked down, gaping as his men cried out in horror. His body was tossed to the side, and Amanda opened her eyes when she heard the men firing wildly at the trees.

There was a flash of metal as one of their throats was slit, the man sinking to the floor as the one beside him emerged from the woods, screaming as his arm was ripped off by an unseen figure. Three more were swept aside by more tentacles, and Amanda widened her eyes when an animalistic figure on all fours jumped onto a man, and tore his throat out with malice. It was the dog she'd seen at the edge of the woods, earlier today. He looked at her, baring his teeth, and she gasped.

This was the dog who'd appeared in . The humanlike teeth, the flaming eyes, all of it was the same. He kept looking at her for a moment or two before dashing back into the shadows, to finish off another unlucky person. One man was thrown onto the ground next to Amanda, his eyes gouged out and legs torn off. She saw another have his stomach sliced open by a scalpel, before his attacker pulled out his kidney and began munching on it greedily, to her utmost disgust.

"Help us!" She whipped her head around as she saw the final man, dragging himself along the floor with a single hand, all his other limbs bent at impossible angles. "Help us, please-" A black tentacle snaked out from the shadows, and wrapped around his ankle. He screamed as he was dragged back into the darkness, before three more tentacles appeared, each one wrapping around a limb. The four appendages all pulled in opposite directions as the man screamed, before his body was torn into pieces. His head fell next to her, and she gagged at the sight of his eyes; the pupils were dilated completely, like the man she'd killed in the hospital.

Amanda looked into the shadows, gulping as the figures who'd saved her stepped out of the darkness. There was the dog from smile dot jpg, who barked at her happily as he licked his lips from the blood around his mouth. Next to him was a man wearing a blue mask, his eyes completely dark. A black substance was dripping from his left eyehole, and he hastily moved to wipe it off. On the other side was a girl in a white hoodie and shoes, wearing a dirty white mask over her face. To her right stood a man with white makeup, wearing a black hoodie now splattered with blood. He had no eyelids, as he stared at her with his wide eyes filled with endless curiosity. And in the middle of them all stood the tall man, his face blank as a canvas and his black clothes covered in the blood of the men he'd killed. His four tentacles retracted into his back, and he knelt down, staring at Amanda.

"Hello. You led those men on quite a chase." The tall man chuckled, extending a hand to her. "Are you alright?" She gave him a shaky nod, staring at his face and gulping.

 _God, he has no face._

"Are you afraid of me? Are you afraid of us?" He asked, and Amanda nodded hesitantly. He laughed, and a single tentacle extended from his back. She flinched when it reached her, but relaxed when it simply caressed her back. "You've had a long day. Maybe you just need to clear your mind." He said, and she grimaced a little.

"Boss, back up a little. She's shaking like crazy." The tall man whipped his head around as the man in the makeup spoke, a smirk on his face. "Relax kid. Boss man is always like this."

"Shut up, Jeff." He hissed, before looking back at Amanda, who surveyed each person with wonder in her eyes.

"Who-Who are you?" She questioned the tall man, who retracted his tentacle.

"I…I am Slender Man." He said soothingly as she looked at his body, as if only now noticing his slim form. "And these are my underlings."

"Oi, don't call us that." Jeff called out, and Slender Man's four tentacles suddenly shot out, flailing in the air.

"I told you to shut up." He growled, and patted Amanda's head.

"What's wrong with me?" She asked him worriedly, as she shook violently. "My shadow's changing, I can't breathe without it hurting like hell…help me, please." Slender Man rubbed her back as he tilted his head, tentacles relaxing.

"Your shadow is becoming unstable; it's the reason why your lungs are damaged." He explained. "With your condition, you won't last a week." Amanda looked down at her hands, and cried as he continued. "However, I have something that can help you. A substance that will supress your shadows, so that you can live." Her eyes darted upwards, expression hopeful.

"Please, I-I…" She choked and gasped for air, before continuing. "I need it."

"I'll give it to you, on one condition." Slender Man said, and she nodded enthusiastically.

"Name it." He tilted his head, and chuckled.

"I'll give you the substance…if you become my Proxy." Amanda gave him a confused look, and frowned.

"What?"

"It means that you'll be bonded to me. Forever." He explained. "You'll be like them." He motioned towards the figures behind him, and leaned forward a little. "Your body will stop aging. You'll receive superhuman strength and agility. And most importantly, you'll live. But like I said, you'll be bonded to me forever. Whenever I give you an order, you will obey it without question. Whenever I ask you to go somewhere, that's where you will go. You will be _my_ servant, living to obey only _me_. Are you sure you're up for that?"

Amanda gulped, and looked at the Proxies congregated behind him. All of them stared at her, either expressionless or their faces hidden behind their masks. Sighing, she nodded, and took his hand.

"Okay. I'm in." Nothing happened. No sudden fires or explosions, no shooting stars, no feeling of _bonding_. Just a decision made, made purely out of survival instinct. But as she said those words, she could feel that if Slender Man had a face, he would be grinning.

"Alright then. Tell me then, what's your name?"

"Amanda. Amanda Reed." She told him, and he laughed as he rose to his full height.

"Everyone, please welcome Amanda, the newest member of our group." Instantly the dog bounded forward, landing in her lap. Just like that, all the nightmares and vivid images of went away, and Amanda laughed as he licked her face.

"I knew you seemed like more than just a regular dog." She grinned, as the rest of the Proxies stepped forward to greet her.

"I'm slightly offended that you even considered that I was normal." Amanda blinked, and stared at the dog.

"You can talk."

"Yes, I can talk. Don't look so surprised." She raised an eyebrow, setting him down.

"Okay. What's your name?" she asked, and the dog yapped.

"My full name? That would be Smile Dog. But everyone just calls me Smile." He told her, still grinning stupidly.

"Don't get too attached to him." Amanda whipped her head around as the girl in the white hoodie spoke. "Before you know it, you'll find dog shit in your bed, and know who to blame." She chuckled, pulling her hood back, but keeping the mask on. "I'm Kate, by the way."

"Hi. Nice to meet you." Amanda attempted to stand, before promptly falling back down.

"Here, let me help you." The man in the blue mask said as he put his arms around her waist and pulled her up. "And my name's Jack. Eyeless Jack."

"Hi. And uh, thanks." She said, and he waved her off. Everyone's eyes drew towards Jeff, who shrugged and looked at Amanda mischievously.

"Well, I guess you already know my name." He said, and she laughed.

"Yeah. Jeff." He snickered, and shook his head.

"That's just my first name. But out there," he waved in the general direction of the town, "they call me Jeff the Killer. It's on the internet, actually. I'm quite flattered by the attention, I must admit."

"If you're all done, I'd like to give Amanda the substance now." They all turned towards Slender Man, who sounded annoyed. Amanda nodded, and walked forward as he produced a tiny bottle of greenish liquid. "You'll need to take one of these every twelve hours. Don't overuse them; we've only got a limited supply. And we could make more, but it's less a matter of how difficult they are to make and more a matter of finding the ingredients." He told her, and she nodded. "Okay, open wide." She opened her mouth and tipped her head back as Slender Man unscrew the bottle, and poured the contents down her throat. Just before it hit, he chuckled. "Make sure you don't gag."

Amanda gave him a confused look, before the flavour hit her. It tasted like raw eggs, mixed with blood and spoilt milk. She lurched forward, gasping as she staggered. Slender Man laughed as the rest of the Proxies stared at her, dumbfounded.

"Well, that certainly interesting." Jeff murmured. "How did it taste?"

"Do you really need to ask that?" Amanda asked him, feeling irritated as she looked at Slender Man.

"Well, now you're _officially_ bonded with me." The tall man laughed, and clapped his hands. "So much to do, so much to do. Let's head home. I'm feeling hungry."

 **xXx**

"This isn't good, Miller." Chief Miller sighed as Officer Watson tried to bring across the same point for the fifth time. "People are asking questions we don't know how to answer. She was vomiting black ooze, for god's sake! What the hell even it that?"

"I get your point, Watson." He muttered, as the officer frowned. "Just keep them quiet for now; we'll think of something."

"Sure thing." As Watson raced outside, Miller grimaced. The citizens definitely weren't happy. There was now a manhunt for Amanda Reed, an action he'd tried his best to prevent. Unlike most people, he genuinely believed that the girl was the victim here, but wasn't able to convince anyone else. People were too willing to believe the majority.

"Chief Miller." Miller whipped around as a man approached him, wearing suit and tie. "I'm Detective Amsel." He introduced himself, extending a hand. Miller shook it, confusion evident in his tone.

"It's a pleasure to meet you. What are you doing here?" Amsel's eyes darted around, before he grinned.

"I know that you saw Amanda's shadow did." Miller jolted, and frowned.

"How do you know about that?"

"Oh, don't worry about that." Amsel brushed him off. "You should just worry about the fact that things like this have happened before."

"What?" Miller was stunned as he absorbed the information. "You mean, the jumping shadows and everything; that's a thing that happens naturally?"

"Oh, we haven't seen jumping shadows before." Amsel admitted. "No, we've seen worse things. A man with eight appendages. A person who eats organs. A dog that speaks. I work with a group of people who investigate the supernatural. We call ourselves The Organization." Miller stared at him in silence, comprehending the situation.

"Oh, and by the way, I'm heading back to base soon, so we can discuss this latest occurrence." Amsel told him, turning around to walk out the door. "I reckon you should come with me. After all, you must have a lot of questions."


	2. The Stroke of a Knife

**This is happening. It ain't stopping either.**

 **I uploaded that Binding of Isaac fic I was talking about. I'd appreciate it if you read it; only if you're interested, of course. It's called Babylon; rated M though. Quick warning.**

 **Well, I'm done. Let's just get on with the chapter.**

Chapter 2

The Stroke of a Knife

The house wasn't really a house; it was more like a mansion. The size of it was immense; it could have covered half a block, and it was three stories high. Balconies jutted out from every window, and the shingles on the roof were painted a rich dark brown; they didn't look faded in the slightest.

"You alright?" Amanda looked to her left to see Kate, her hood now back up. "You look stressed."

"I'm fine." She said, waving her off. "Just curious as to what I have to do. You know, as his Proxy." She frowned when she saw Kate exchanging a glance with Jeff. "What is it?" She asked worriedly. "Is it that bad?"

"Just wait." Eyeless Jack said from behind her. "You'll see." If the comment was meant to reassure Amanda that everything would be fine, it failed terribly; she felt even more nervous than before. Smile snickered as he padded along beside her, tongue lolling from his open maw. A glob of spit landed in between his legs, and he took a moment to pause and look at it before continuing onwards.

Slender Man stalked in front of them, his ridiculously long legs covering the distance faster than the group could keep up. His tentacles dragged in the dirt, leaving a thick slimy trail of black ooze. Once they reached the gate, one of the dark appendages slid through the bars, wrapping around the handle and pulling it down.

The massive spiked metal gates swung open, and Amanda gaped in amazement at the house's appearance. She'd seen it in the distance, but up close it looked radiant, like it gave off some sort of warm glow. She and the rest of the Proxies stepped through the gates after Slender Man, not turning back to watch them shut.

"Is it just us, or are there more?" She asked Smile curiously as the doors of the house swung open, revealing a brightly lit interior and an inviting red carpet.

"Proxies? Oh, there are more. There's four more holed up in this house, if you ignore the fact that we're inside now. My only advice is that you don't eat Laughing Jack's candy. You'll _probably_ end up sick for a week." The dog grinned at Amanda stupidly as she looked around, nervous. Despite the fact that this new environment seemed warm and inviting, something about it seemed imposing, making her feel almost inferior. Whenever she looked at Slender Man, she shivered, and she wasn't even sure why. But in here, there was a sense of authority around him, almost like an aura. This was his home, his domain, and in here, he was boss.

"Smile, I want you to take Amanda to her room. I'll call her for initiation later." The tall man said suddenly as they reached the middle of the enormous room. Two large staircases shot up in opposite directions on the wall in front of them, and the dog barked obediently.

"Master." He nudged Amanda's leg, before trotting off up the right staircase. The brunette followed him hesitantly as the rest of the Proxies broke off into smaller groups, Kate following behind them while Eyeless Jack and Jeff went up the left staircase. Before long, Amanda found herself following Smile down a dimly lit hallway, the only light sources being candles mounted on metal stands.

"There's only ten of us here, including Slender Man. But there's around a hundred rooms in this place." Smile told her as he stopped at one of the doors, and tapped his paw against it. "This is your room. Take a moment to settle in. Like Slender Man said, he'll call you for initiation. Don't waste time when he asks for you; he gets pretty mad." Amanda gave him a stiff nod as she saw Kate entering her own room behind them.

Smile bounded away, probably to head to his own room; that was, if Slender Man had even bothered to let the dog have one. Sighing, she spun the metal doorknob, and stepped inside the room. Reaching to the side, she fingered the light switch and flicked it down.

The room was nearly barren, the only furniture being a small wooden desk and a white bed. There was a window leading out to a balcony, but it was currently covered by purple curtains. The walls were painted white as well, as if the room was saying _make me your own_.

Amanda sat down cross legged on the bed, as she stared at the door, waiting for it to open. Slender Man had said he'd send for her; how exactly would he do that?

She thought about what had happened today, and shuddered. So much had occurred, and in so little time. She'd gone from just being an ordinary girl to a criminal wanted for murder, in the space of no more than twelve hours. She had a critical lung condition, an unstable shadow and would probably fall dead if she didn't take that disgusting medication twice a day.

It was absolutely crazy. And yet Amanda felt like it made more sense than anything else in her life. Maybe her mother's beatings had taken out the realism of most things in life; things like friends and the concept of love. Had she ever had friends before? Sure, there had been the few nice people who'd went to school with her, but Amanda hadn't ever really considered any of them as friends. They'd' been emotional crutches, shells which she'd depended on to keep her own sanity, but they hadn't been her friends. She'd never had friends.

But maybe, just maybe, she'd make a few friends here. This house might have been filled with oddities and things which could probably convert even the strongest atheists, but it felt more grounded than any other place she'd been. Here, she felt like she belonged. Yawning, Amanda lay down, as her eyelids drifted shut. Somewhere outside her window, a crow cawed.

 **xXx**

Miller eyed Amsel suspiciously, as the detective sat in silence. They were sitting in his car, with Amsel at the wheel and Miller riding shotgun. The two hadn't exchanged a single word for the entirety of the two hours they'd been in the car. Amsel had told Miller that he was taking him to The Organisation, but hadn't mentioned where it was. Maybe he just wanted to keep it secret. After all, Miller couldn't recognise any of the streets they were driving through, and the houses looked almost alien.

"Just ten more minutes." Amsel said suddenly, and Miller flinched at the sound of his voice. "When you see the entrance, don't scream. I have to knock out enough people every day already." Miller raised an eyebrow, but remained silent as Amsel swerved to the left in order to avoid a group of people crossing the streets. "Bloody morons." He hissed, taking a left and ignoring the upcoming speedbump. "They're always there, every damn time." The car violently jolted upwards, but both men remained expressionless, not reacting in the slightest.

A few minutes later, they entered a secluded side street, which led to a dead end.

"Why are we here?" Miller asked, as Amsel pulled out his phone.

"Just wait. This is the entrance." The man pressed a button on the device, and suddenly the ground began to lower. Miller whipped around in confusion as the car sunk down on a secret platform. Something slid over the top of the entrance, hiding it once again as they descended, and he looked around in wonder. They were being lowered into a massive room, the floor and walls all completely white. There were several tanks located throughout the entire facility, and men in lab coats stood around them, clipboards in hand.

"This," Amsel chuckled, "is The Organisation. We've been here for years, remaining unnoticed for all this time."

"This is crazy." Miller muttered to himself. "Absolutely crazy."

"Yup." Amsel agreed as the platform came to a shuddering halt. "Come on, we need to reach the conference room; we're holding a meeting regarding the girl."

Miller silently stepped out of the car, following Amsel as he guided him down several brightly lit corridors, passing colour coded doors and testing rooms. Finally, they halted outside a large white door, and Amsel swiped a card over a hidden panel. At once the door slid to the left, allowing the two men to walk inside.

Within the room, it looked much like the outside. The only difference was a long rectangular table in the middle of the room, at which several men and women were seated. All of them were dressed in black, and they stared at the pair ominously as they entered the room. Amsel nudged Miller into a seat, before sitting down next to him.

"Chief Miller." The man at the table said, a calm smile on his face. His grey-black hair was wild, and his eyes flashed with something that could have been amusement. "I'm Director Williams. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance."

"Likewise." Miller replied, still bewildered by the situation. "You mind telling me what's going on? Amsel here hasn't told me much."

"Oh, certainly." Williams said with a smug grin on his face. "The Organisation studies supernatural forces which we believe could be threats to humanity. However, for years we've been tracking a species that we are certain to be a threat; we call them Slender Men. They're known to kill people of any age, including children; a lot of people are even aware of them. They were revealed to the world via an image a few years ago. Most people think they're a myth, but believe me, Slender Men exist. It's the biggest threat we've ever seen."

"What does this have to do with Amanda Reed?" Miller asked as Williams gave him a smirk.

"Right, right. Olivia's daughter. Well, you see, we've been monitoring her for quite some time. It's common for victims of abuse to well, resent people. Add on Amanda's depression and you get a pretty messed up kid. The concerning thing is that disappearances linked to Slender Men almost always are linked to victims of abuse. As for how her shadows contorts, we're not sure about what that is. But she was almost certainly taken by a Slender Man."

"Amanda ran from the hospital willingly." Miller pointed out. "You're saying that she was being influenced or something?"

"Exactly. We have reason to believe that she is a Proxy; that means that she is bonded with a Slender Man. It's likely that Olivia's death and the instability of her shadow were induced by a Slender Man, or possible multiple. If this is true, then Amanda isn't in control of her own actions. She'd merely a puppet for a paranormal entity."

"So how do we get rid of his influence?"

"Oh, that's simple. We just have to kill him."

 **xXx**

When the knock came to her door, Amanda woke instantly, jolting upwards in shock. She shook her head as the person at the door continued to rap against the door impatiently.

"Would you open up?" She threw off the blankets and walked up to the door. "I'll give you candy if you come out." Amanda frowned, her hand tensing around the doorknob. "Or I won't give you candy, or, uh, I don't know. Just open the door, please." Sighing, she spun the knob, hearing the lock click as it slid open.

Before her stood a clown dressed in baggy clothes, coloured only white and black. He grinned at her as he held out his hand, revealing several wrapped pieces of candy.

"Well, I promised you candy. Here you go." She looked at it hesitantly, before motioning towards the floor with her head.

"Put it on the floor and walk away." The clown raised an eyebrow, chuckling as he did what she said.

"Alright then. All yours. But do come down; Slender Man wants to see you." He whistled as he walked away, hands in pockets. Amanda watched him as she went, before picking the candy up off the floor. She selected a red candy from the pile of five, turning it over. Were they poisoned? After everything she'd seen today, she wouldn't be surprised. But Slender Man would probably have that clown's head if he killed her, so she relaxed as she unwrapped it and popped it in her mouth.

Surprisingly, it tasted amazing. She sucked it slowly, savouring the sweet taste as she headed downstairs, wondering what initiation would be like. Smile hadn't really talked about it, but the others had almost seemed worried. Putting her worries to the back of her mind, she walked down the stairs to see Slender Man standing in the centre of the room, exactly where he'd been when she'd left to go to her room.

"I didn't stay here for the past four hours, in case you were wondering." The tall man said as Amanda approached him. "I just got back. I found your assignment." She raised an eyebrow, but shrugged.

"Alright. So…?" Slender Man pulled out a plastic white mask, which looked exactly like Kate's.

"Put it on. And take this too." He handed her a switchblade, which she played with for a moment, sliding the blade back and forth.

"What's it for?" Amanda asked him, and watched as his tentacles emerged from his back.

"Don't throw up." Before she could react, his hand was grabbing her arm and they were no longer in the house. She staggered back, gasping as she felt a twist in her stomach. She looked around, taking in the green grass, wooden fence and the house they were now behind.

"What are we doing here?" She asked, and Slender Man gave her an invisible smirk, before pointing at the house.

"Initiation; a test of both capability and loyalty. Inside this house are two people; a couple. The man is 33. The woman is 32. I want you to kill them both." Amanda froze, and stared at Slender Man, waiting for him to tell her that he was joking. He didn't.

"You can't be serious." She muttered, looking back at the house. "You want me to kill someone?"

"You've killed before, haven't you?" He asked, sounding irritated. "It's not that hard to do it again."

"That was an accident!" She yelled at him, before he grabbed her head with his hand, clenching as she winced from the pain. His fingers dug into her skin, drawing blood.

"If you don't kill those people, you won't get your medication. And then you'll die. How would you like that?" Slender Man forced her head to the left, so that she was looking at the house. "Now, you're going to go in there, and if they aren't dead by the end of the night, you'll die. That is, if they haven't killed you already." Amanda shuddered, and looked down at the switchblade clenched in her fist. "And I thought I told you to put on the mask." Her head turned to the plastic mask, which stared back at her with empty eyes. Sighing, she pulled the strap over her head and positioned the mask so that she could see.

Slender Man teleported away, and Amanda grimaced at the thought of killing the people inside the house. She had killed that man in the hospital, but she hadn't known what she was doing. That hadn't been her. Now she was herself again, holding a switchblade in her hand with a mask over her face. Now she was going to kill _on purpose_.

Shaking her head, Amanda stalked up to the door, looking through the window to see a man and woman sitting at a table, eating their dinner. They looked so…so happy. She couldn't just kill them, she couldn't. These people, these happy people. The man said something, and the woman laughed. Amanda's stomach lurched. Hesitating, she looked at the door, suddenly realising that there was no way for her to surprise them. Taking a deep breath, she rammed her foot against the door, watching it fall down with a feeling of satisfaction.

She heard the man yell as she rushed forward, knife in hand. Before she could reach him, she was knocked to the side by the woman, who screamed at her.

"Who the hell are you? What are you doing?!" Amanda rolled out of the way as the man attempted to smash his foot into her face.

"Shit." She muttered, standing up and slashing at the man, missing by millimetres. The woman had armed herself with a frying pan, and was now walking towards her. Panicking, Amanda rushed at the woman, but was pulled back by the man as he forced her against the kitchen counter.

"Who _are_ you?" He yelled at her, and attempted to pull of her mask. She pulled her left hand back, gripping something heavy. She swung it at him, and realised she was now holding a massive kitchen knife. The blade cut his cheek, causing him to stumble backwards. The woman rushed at her, bringing the frying pan down onto her head.

Amanda cried out in pain, as she attempted to get up only to be hit down again. The man walked towards her, pulling another knife from the counter. Her eyes flicked between the two, trying to make a decision as she clenched the kitchen knife in one hand and the switchblade in the other. As the woman raised the frying pan up again, she lunged upwards, shoving the switchblade into her throat. Amanda watched as the woman stared at her in shock, gurgling as blood began to pour from her throat. Then her eyes became glassy, and she fell forwards, dead.

The man yelled, kicking Amanda aside as he rushed at her.

"You killed my wife, you fucking bitch!" He roared, before throwing the knife at her. The blade spun through the air, catching her on the arm as she attempted to roll out of the way. Her eyes teared as she looked at the knife now embedded into the floor. As the man walked towards her, Amanda pulled the knife out of the floor, before launching the blades in both her hands towards the man. They both caught him in the stomach as he fell back, frothing at the mouth. She watched him shakily as he raised his head, giving her one last hateful stared before his head tipped back, lifeless.

Amanda cried as she curled herself into a ball, her eyes clenched shut as tears tried to break through. Blood was splattered all over her clothes, and her wounds bled freely. She'd killed them. She'd killed those two happy people, just to save her own life. How selfish was she, to go to such great lengths? To judge her single life as more valuable than the two she had just ended?

"You look sad." Amanda raised her head to see Slender Man standing over the man's body, his tentacles currently withdrawn. "I can't understand why; you passed your initiation."

"You…you sicko." She cried, hugging her knees to her chest. "You sick bastard."

"You're angry. Is this because I made you kill those two people?"

"What the fuck else?" She asked, and Slender Man knelt down next to her, his blank face staring into hers.

"Why exactly are you sad about their deaths?" He questioned her, and she frowned at him.

"What do you mean? You made me kill people!" Amanda screamed at him, and he raised his hand.

"True, true. But when did I ever imply that they were innocent?" She froze, as his words raced through her mind.

"What?"

"The man and woman? Their names were Grant and Willow Wood. They were human traffickers." Amanda went silent, as she pulled the mask off her face. "The two of them ran a smuggling ring, which sold girls as sex slaves. They were responsible for over 250 missing person reports over the past five years. By killing them, you destabilised the ring. It'll be without a head, and it won't be able to function. They won't kidnap girls anymore. You just did the world a massive favour."

Amanda stayed silent for a moment, before she spoke.

"Why didn't you tell me what they'd done?" She asked Slender Man, who tilted his head.

"Would you have killed them without hesitation, if I'd told you?" She nodded, and he gave her that invisible smirk of his. "Then that wouldn't have been a test at all."

 **xXx**

"Come on, you've got to help find her!" Miller said to Williams as he continued to ignore him. "She could be in danger!"

"Relax, Chief Miller." Williams said, his expression one of complete calm. "It's alright. If the Slender Man wants her, then she's still alive. Our current concern is to figure out who he's going to take next, and see if we can help them."

"You're insane." Miller muttered, clutching at his head. "We can't just leave her out there in the woods. Who knows what's happening to her!"

"For god's sake…alright, let me tell you something, Chief. You run your force, I run my organisation. You understand that you do your best, but you can't help everyone, right? I'm in that position right now. As much as I would like to save every victim of the Slender Men, sending my men on the suicide mission to retrieve _one_ girl doesn't seem wise. You heard what happened to the men who chased her; they were all found dead. That was the work of the Slender Man."

Miller was silent as Williams nudged Amsel, his expression suddenly serious.

"Test the tracker. See if you can find the target." The Inspector nodded, before racing out of the room, leaving Williams and Miller alone.

"Listen, I can't deal with this." Miller said suddenly. "I need to find Amanda; I can't let her get corrupted by this monster."

"I'm not stopping you." William's told him grimly. "But I can't afford to let my men die for a futile cause. You're on your own." The man left, leaving Miller alone in the room.

 **xXx**

When the two made it back to the house, Smile was already waiting outside to greet them. Amanda managed a weak smile as he bounded towards them, yapping happily.

"Hi." She said as the dog licked her hand, grinning happily. "You look excited."

"You came back." He pointed out, wagging his tail. "Initiation is a shit storm for most people. I'm surprised you look so relaxed."

"He told me what they did." She explained. "Human traffickers."

"Ah. He gave you a good one." Smile scowled at Slender Man, who just shrugged. "He gave me a date rape."

"Still important." Amanda shrugged as they walked through the gate. "Don't want to let a rapist get away."

"Yeah, but he gave you human traffickers. That's way more important." She snorted as the dog continued to complain. "I mean, compare that. Just take a moment. Compare it." Amanda laughed, and collapsed on the carpet.

"Holy crap. This is a good carpet." She muttered, turning onto her back. "Wow." Smile gave her a bewildered look, as Slender Man nudged her with his foot.

"Get some rest. I'll send someone to wake you up in the morning." The tall man said as Amanda sighed, reluctantly getting up and heading for her room, still clutching her mask and the switchblade.

"Just don't send the clown. Unless he brings candy." She called back, shaking her head. "Only if he brings candy."

"You reckon Laughing Jack's gonna do that?" Smile asked as Slender Man shrugged.

"You never know, with Laughing Jack. He's crazy."

"Aye. I hear you."

Amanda smiled as she opened the door to her room and collapsed onto her bed, tossing the mask and switchblade onto the table. She seriously needed to get her clothes from her house; the sleeves of the hospital gown were way too short, and she felt cold wherever she went. The blood from the Woods was splattered on her arms, and her hair was sticky from the crimson liquid.

She rolled over in her bed to face the window, and frowned as she noticed that the curtains were flapping. Cautiously, she got out of her bed and moved towards the window, picking up the switchblade. Amanda reached out with her hand, and tore away the curtains.

No one was there; she was alone. Sighing in relief she looked out at the trees in the moonlight, smiling at the sudden blast of cool night air. Yawning, she turned around, only to see the strange lines drawn onto the curtain. Frowning, Amanda closed the window, before twisting the curtain around so she could see the mark drawn.

It was a circle, with a huge x in the middle, breaking the boundaries of the shape. It was painted in black tar, with red highlights that looked suspiciously like blood. Gulping, Amanda retreated back to her bed, pulling the covers up to her chin. She'd ask Slender Man about it in the morning.

 **xXx**

"Open up!" Amanda rolled over, looking at the door in annoyance. "Hey, you said I should bring candy. So I brought candy. Five. But you're only getting them if you come out." She sighed, walking over to the door and pulling it open. The clown was there again, wearing the same black and white attire as yesterday. "Is the candy too tempting? Too good? You know, I made it myself."

"Cool." Amanda murmured sleepily, but completely genuinely. "That's cool."

"Uh huh. Slender Man lets me go out to get the stuff I need. Oh yeah, and he told me to get you this." The clown pulled out a small bottle of greenish liquid, which Amanda snatched up greedily.

She unscrewed the lid, tipping her head back and emptying the contents down her throat. The clown watched her with interest, before taking the bottle back once she was done with it.

"Thanks." Amanda said as she wiped her lips. "God; that explains why I was feeling so off." The clown just laughed, before tossing her a piece of red candy and motioning down the hall. As they walked, she unwrapped the candy and popped it into her mouth, once again savouring the flavour.

When they got downstairs Slender Man was there, standing motionless as they approached him.

"Hello, Amanda." He greeted. "I see Laughing Jack gave you that candy." She raised an eyebrow, looking at Laughing Jack.

"So you're Laughing Jack."

"Yeah."

"How many Jacks are there?" She asked, and both he and Slender Man laughed.

"Just me and Eyeless." He told her as he wore a stupid grin.

"Uh huh." Amanda muttered, suddenly disinterested. "By the way, I think I need to get my stuff from home; I need clothes other than this stupid hospital gown."

"Great minds think alike." Slender Man said with a tint of playfulness in his voice. "Alright; grab on." As soon as she latched onto his arm they were gone, standing in her room in her old house. Amanda instantly sat down, dizzy as Slender Man let go of her arm and looked around.

"Your old room is nice." He observed, and she smiled wistfully.

"Ha, ha. Alright, let's get my stuff and get out of here as soon as possible." The tall man gave her a stiff nod, before walking over to her closet and flinging it open.

"Well." He muttered at the three sets of clothes, neatly folded. "I was expecting more."

"Mom didn't think I needed much." Amanda explained. "I had four sets of clothes. One of them is probably at the hospital." She wrinkled her nose at the thought, before shaking her head. "Ah, whatever. It sucks, but I guess I can live with it."

"I'll get it for you later." Slender Man said, and she laughed.

"You? With your tentacles and blank face?" She asked, and he stared at her seriously.

"I can be very sneaky when I want to be." Somehow Amanda didn't doubt him as she walked forwards, piling the three sets of clothes before latching back onto his arm. Without a word, he teleported them back into her room in the Proxy house, where she set the clothes on her table.

"Thanks." She said, and Slender Man shrugged. "Oh yeah! By the way, I need to ask you something."

"Shoot." He said, and she walked over to the window, twisting the purple curtain around so that the symbol was facing them.

"Have you seen this before?" The tall man suddenly went rigid as he saw the symbol. He walked forwards slowly, and stretched out his hand to touch it.

"You didn't paint this, did you?" He asked Amanda, who shook her head.

"No. I just found it last night. The window was open and I-"

"The window was open?!" She gulped, and nodded.

"Yeah. I got into my room and the curtains were flapping." Slender Man let out a string of creative curse words as he clutched as his head.

"He's found us. He knows where we are."

"Who are you talking about?" Amanda asked, irritated. "What's the symbol?"

"That," Slender Man said hatefully, "is the Operator Symbol. It's the sign of another being like me."

"So there are more things like you?" She asked, confused. "Like, with tentacles and stuff? No face?"

"The Operator has no tentacles." He said as she tore the curtains from the window. "But he has a greater number of Proxies than I do. He's been trying to overthrow my control for years."

"Oh." She murmured, looking at the torn curtains. "So, uh, what do we do?"

"I'm going to burn these curtains. I'll replace them by the end of the night. As for you, I'll tell Kate to help you with your mask. That is, after all, just a basic one."

"Okay." She said as Slender Man left without another word, taking the curtains with him. Amanda looked back at the window, and frowned. "Well, this can't be good." She shook her head as she grabbed a blue T-shirt and a pair of jeans, before making sure that her door was locked. Silently she pulled the hospital gown off over her head, and dropped it on the floor.

 **xXx**

"Chief Miller? We've got something on Amanda Reed." Miller whipped his head around as Amsel entered the room, carrying a laptop.

"Finally." He muttered as the Inspector opened the laptop and set it on the table, before typing in his password. "What do you have? Good news?"

"Eh…" Amsel shrugged, before pulling up some video footage and turning the screen towards Miller. "This is footage from the house of Grant and Willow Wood. Watch." The two watched as a kitchen was shown on the screen, the couple sitting there and having dinner. Miller frowned when he saw a person wearing a white plastic mask peeking in from the window, before disappearing from view.

Suddenly the door crashed down, and the girl walked in, lunging at Grant with her switchblade. Miller watched the fight unfold, until both of the adults were dead, and only the girl was standing. She didn't seem to notice the camera as she curled over, crying.

"This is where it gets interesting." Amsel said, as the feed suddenly went black. "Everything was suddenly disabled…apart from the audio."

"You look sad. I can't understand why; you passed your initiation." A crackly voice said suddenly. Miller frowned at the unstable audio.

"You…you sicko. You sick bastard." They heard Amanda say quietly. It was definitely her voice; Miller wasn't going to forget it anytime soon.

"You're angry. Is this because I made you kill those two people?" The crackly voice asked.

"What the fuck else?"

"Why exactly are you sad about their deaths?"

"What do you mean? You made me kill people!"

"True, true. But when did I ever imply that they were innocent?"

"What?" Amanda echoes Miller's thoughts as the crackly voice continued.

"The man and woman? Their names were Grant and Willow Wood. They were human traffickers. The two of them ran a smuggling ring, which sold girls as sex slaves. They were responsible for over 250 missing person reports over the past five years. By killing them, you destabilised the ring. It'll be without a head, and it won't be able to function. They won't kidnap girls anymore. You just did the world a massive favour."

"Why didn't you tell me what they'd done?"

"Would you have killed them without hesitation, if I'd told you?" There was a pause, probably Amanda nodding.

"Then that wouldn't have been a test at all."

The feed ended, Miller staring blankly at the screen in silence.

"She's under his control." Amsel said uncomfortably. "It's official now; we can't do anything for her now."

"There must be something that we can do." Miller said in frustration. "We could break his influence over her."

"And how would we do that?" Amsel asked, and Miller instantly fell silent. "You know that there's probably only one way of breaking his influence, and that's to kill the Slender Man himself. And _how_ do you plan to do that?"

"…I don't know. But we can do it. I'm sure we can; we can set a trap for him. Set bait, to draw him in."

"We barely know anything about the Slender Man." Amsel pointed out. "How would we bait him?" Miller looked at him, grim determination on his face.

"We take Amanda."

 **xXx**

Amanda walked into the hallway, to be greeted by Kate. The other girl was still wearing her plastic mask and hoodie.

"Do you _ever_ take your mask off?" Amanda asked, and Kate tilted her head.

"Only in private. The mask is more a…Proxy tradition." She explained, and Amanda nodded in understanding.

"Ah." She muttered, looking down at her own mask in her hands. She took another of Laughing Jack's candies from her pocket, popping it into her mouth.

"You look better in regular clothes." Kate observed, and Amanda manages a small smile.

"Um, thanks."

"We should go." Kate said suddenly, motioning with her head towards the stairs. Amanda nodded, and together they made their way downstairs. "Slender Man says that you needed help with your mask." She pointed at the plastic mask in Amanda's hands.

"You didn't change yours." She said, and Kate shrugged.

"I did some bad things while I wore this mask. When I wear it, I guess it just serves as a reminder." She explained, as she opened the doors.

"Okay." Amanda said, falling silent as they walked around to the back of the house. There was a table there, atop of which was a sheet of A3 paper and a pencil. Kate motioned for Amanda to sit down, before taking out a measuring tape.

"I need to take some measurements." Kate told her, and Amanda shrugged.

"Go ahead." It was strange at first, letting Kate measure the dimensions of her face. But it was all over in a few minutes, and the dark haired girl placed the tape measure on the table. She grabbed the paper, and began to sketch a rough outline. Amanda watched as Kate drew the shape of her face, and placed the pencil on the table.

"Come back to me when you're done drawing." She said, before leaving, hands in pockets. Amanda watched as she left, before picking up the pencil and pressing it against the paper. Kate had indicated where her eyes were with thin lines, and Amanda began to trace around them slowly.

She sat there for hours, drawing lines and shading as here pencil went up and down, up and down, as the sun slowly began to go down. Amanda never went to get Kate; Kate had to go and get her.

"Holy shit." The other girl said when she saw what Amanda had drawn. "That looks crazy."

"I'll take that as a compliment." She muttered, handing Kate the sheet. "I'm gonna need it in metal."

"Metal masks are heavy." She pointed out, and Amanda shrugged.

"Don't worry. I can handle it." Kate gave her a look, but sighed and took the sheet of paper.

"Well, come in then. I'm pretty sure you have to take your medication soon." Amanda face palmed as she remembered her condition, groaning softly.

"Shit. You're right. Yeah, I'll come inside." She followed Kate inside the house, feeling like an idiot for not remembering that she could drop into an epileptic seizure at any second if she didn't take her medication. Smile was waiting for them downstairs, but he didn't look pleased.

"Slender Man has your medication." He said glumly, before trotting off.

"Where is he?" Amanda called after him, but the dog was already gone. "Fuck."

"It's fine." Kate said, though she sounded slightly worried. "He'll be around somewhere."

"I'm going to go to my room." Amanda muttered quietly. "That way if I explode, it's away from you guys."

"Okay. See you." Kate said as Amanda ascended the stairs, her stomach fluttering.

"Crap. Shit, shit…" She entered her room, and shrieked when she saw Slender Man standing behind her bed, arms crossed. There were new curtains now, free of the Operator Symbol; however, they were a lighter shade than before.

"I hope you don't mind the colour change." He said as she shut the door. "We were out of the dark purple."

"Uh…" Amanda glanced briefly at the curtains, then remembered why she had been looking for him. "Do you have my…" She looked down at her hand, swallowing as she realised that it was shaking. Her shadow was beginning to waver, flickering in and out of its regular shape. It took a few seconds for Slender Man to realise what was happening, but as soon he did, he leapt into action.

He caught Amanda moments before she hit the floor, eyes glazed over. She was muttering something to herself quietly, as her shadow convulsed rapidly. She was already seizing as Slender Man lay her onto her bed, as she continued to mutter to herself frantically. He pulled out a bottle of her medication, forcing her mouth open and tipping it down her throat.

After a few moments, the seizing stopped as Amanda's eyes closed, her muttering coming to a halt. Just like that, she fell asleep, chest rising slowly. Slender Man stood there for a few moments, before teleporting out of the room to see Kate in the hallway.

"Amanda didn't take her medication in time." He said regretfully, and Kate fell silent. "Watch over her; I want someone to be with her when she wakes up."

"Sure thing." The girl said, as Slender Man teleported again, this time to the Woods' house. He looked around, and noticing a security camera, skewered it with a tentacle. There was a man in the kitchen; Slender Man realised that this was Chief Miller, one of the men who genuinely cared.

 _Good for him_ , he thought to himself as Miller looked up at a camera in the kitchen, frowning. Slender man tilted his head as Miller looked out the window, and saw him. He froze, his mouth gaping as Slender Man stalked up to the window, and pressed his palm against the glass, trying to look creepy. Apparently it worked, as Miller muttered a curse and backed away. Chuckling, Slender Man teleported inside the kitchen, causing Miller to jolt backwards.

"What are you doing here?" He asked, and Miller glared at him.

"I could say the same to you, _monster_." The insult didn't faze Slender Man in the slightest. If anything, it made him laugh on the inside.

"You know the rules. I asked first. So tell me why you're here." Miller frowned, but submitted.

"I'm looking for the girl you took. Amanda Reed." He stated, and Slender Man stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"I didn't _take_ Amanda, Miller. She was near death, and she decided to come with me. I'm the only person who can keep her alive right now, considering her condition. Without the proper medication, she'd be dead by now. Speaking of which, she just had another seizure. I gave her the meds, but she'd unconscious right now." Miller blinked at him, and looked back at the security camera.

"The sad thing is, I can't even tell whether you're lying or not." The cop muttered. "They all told me that you were a monster. I still believe that."

"Well, that's a pity." Slender Man muttered. "Amanda doesn't want to go back to your world. She's made that pretty clear. I think she likes it where she is."

"You made her kill two people!" Miller yelled angrily, and Slender Man shrugged.

"They were human traffickers; you incompetent cops didn't even notice the links between the missing girls. _We_ were the ones who found them out. Amanda killed them, and now they're both dead. No more girls going missing because of them. I sent out my best Proxies to take care of the rest of their ring."

"You could have just told us they were there. Leave an anonymous tip." Miller argued, but Slender Man shook his head.

"If they were still alive, they still could have commandeered the rest of the ring from prison. Sometimes it's necessary to kill."

"What are you?" Miller asked suddenly. "I feel like you're telling the truth about Amanda. And yet I hear all these stories about you controlling humans like puppets. So tell me, what are you?" The tall man gave him an invisible smirk, speaking four words before he teleported away.

"I'm the Slender Man."


	3. Killer's Repercussions

**It took a while, but I got it done.**

 **Prepare for the onslaught of updates. The school holidays means free time. Free time means WRITING TIME.**

 **I also thought I'd mention that I'll be releasing the first chapter of a new Pokémon fic soon, just in case you guys are interested.**

 **Alright, see you. Enjoy the chapter! :D**

* * *

Chapter 3

Killer's Repercussions

Amanda's eyelids fluttered open slowly, as she let out a small groan. Her limbs ached, her head throbbed with pain. Kate was sitting beside her on the bed, mask pulled over her face.

"You alright?" She sounded concerned, as Amanda sat up, waving her off.

"Yeah, I think I'm good. What happened?" she asked, and Kate looked away for a moment.

"You had another seizure," she said, and Amanda felt her stomach twist inside out. "Slender Man gave you your medication, but he left. I'm not sure why. I left your sketch with T…one of the other Proxies. You haven't met everyone yet."

"Huh. Okay. Did I…did I break anything?" she asked worriedly, and Kate shook her head. Amanda sighed in relief, while Kate stood up, offering her a hand. She took it, letting the other girl pull her up. She could tell that something was on Kate's mind; she didn't ask, though. It was clear that she'd done things she wasn't proud of.

"Come on; I'm guessing that you'll be wanting your mask now. It should be finished. After all, you've been under for six hours." Somehow, the length of time she'd been under didn't put off Amanda in the slightest. She just gave Kate a slight nod, and opened the door. The dark haired girl pulled up her hood as they walked outside, and led Amanda to a path through the woods.

"The masks aren't made in the Proxy house; we make them somewhere else. There was a place in the woods where the Operator left his mark carved into the ground. Slender Man doesn't like it, but that's where we make them; it's easy to get there, and the path is clear," Kate explained to her as they walked through the trees. Amanda looked up at the dark sky as her feet crunched on dead leaves and broken twigs.

Recently, she'd gotten used to walking barefoot. It was actually uplifting; shoes, she found, had done nothing more than weigh her down when she ran. Kate wore things that she called shoes, but they were more like thin layers of cloth wrapped around her feet. It was less for comfort and more for stealth.

"You remember the clearing where we found you the night you arrived?" Kate asked Amanda, who nodded. "Well, that was the place. It was a stupid idea to stick it in Slender Man's territory though; he paid for that. But ever since he did it, spiritual energy has been present in that area ever since. We take advantage of it. That's why the men stopped when you reached the clearing; they felt the energy."

"Is that what drew me to it?" Amanda wondered out loud, and Kate gave her a small shrug.

"Probably, but if I'm going to be honest, it could have just been the instability of your shadow helping you break through the barrier. Spiritual energy is a weird thing; I don't think even Slender Man fully understands it." Amanda shuddered, remembering the tentacle rising from the darkness. She didn't want something like that to ever happen again.

"Oh, we're here." Kate's words caused her to snap out of her thoughts, as they entered the clearing. Surely enough, the Operator symbol was carved into the ground, painfully obvious in the bright sunshine. "Now, where the hell is–"

"Kate!" Both girls spun around as a teenage boy ran towards them, wearing a blue hoodie and a set of orange goggles. In his hands were two large hatchets, one with an orange handle. Amanda instinctively ducked and shrieked as he approached, prompting Kate to scowl at the boy.

"Toby, I told you to be _quiet_. Amanda is _sensitive_." The boy's eyes flickered between them sheepishly as he pulled down the scarf covering his mouth.

"Sorry. Uh, I'm just excited. Because, you know, usually no one asks for metal and then _someone finally did_ so I was really–"

"Toby," Kate growled, her voice soft but threatening. "Shut up." He looked at her nervously as if he was expecting more, but then quickly calmed down after seeing that she was done.

"Yeah, yeah." His eyes drew towards Amanda, who was still covering her head with her hands. "Oh, hi there." She slowly lowered her arms, tilting her head up towards him. "Sorry for scaring you. Most people are already used to me."

"I'm definitely not," Kate muttered, though she went ignored.

"I'm, uh, Ticci-Toby. But please, just call me Toby." At this point, Amanda had risen back to her full height, slightly embarrassed about being scared by him.

"Cool. Nice to meet you," she said while fishing around in her pocket for one of Laughing Jack's candies. She pulled one out; green this time. All of a sudden, she was reminded of Smile's comment during her first day at the Proxy house. Something about getting sick if she ate Laughing Jack's candy. So far she'd been completely fine, but this green candy was foreign to her. Flipping it over she noticed tiny letters scribbled in marker.

 _Meds for Amanda – LJ._

She smirked as she read them, shaking her head and placing it back into her pocket. This time she came out with a red one, unwrapping it and popping it into her mouth.

"Is that one of Laughing Jack's?" Toby suddenly asked. Amanda gave him a nod as the flavour exploded in her mouth. She hummed happily to his bewilderment, while Kate sighed.

"Can we get what we came for?" she asked him in a surprisingly patient tone. He shrugged, taking something out of the backpack her was carrying. Amanda didn't stop sucking the candy, but her eyes widened all the same.

It looked just the way she'd designed it. The mask sported wide, gaping eyes which complimented the hideous maw directly beneath it. It was filled with a row of razor sharp teeth, mostly for aesthetic purposes, but terrifying and intimidating nonetheless. Toby had even taken the time to paint tiny drops of red onto the teeth, creating the illusion of blood. All in all, Kate was pretty sure that this mask was the most disturbing that she had ever seen. Amanda's work had looked good on paper, but after being brought to life by Toby's craftsmanship, it was simply stunning.

Amanda reached out for it, Toby, handing it over and sighing with relief as he released the heavy mask. However, Amanda held it with ease, barely reacting as she slipped the mask over her face, pulling the strap over her head to secure it. It didn't feel heavy at all. If anything, it felt as light as a feather.

"Amanda?" Kate prodded her in the shoulder, causing her to jerk away for a moment. "Isn't it heavy?" She shook her head, lightly tapping the mask on the side.

"No, not at all. Apparently, my theory proved to be correct." When both of the other Proxies gave her looks of utter confusion, Amanda sighed. "I was just thinking that my shadow has ridiculous levels of power, but it's forced to unleash it elsewhere. That's why it keeps damaging everything around me. But because all of my effort is put into wearing this mask…" she looked down at her shadow, which didn't move in the slightest. "I'm channelling its power through it. I control my own shadow, to an extent." While Toby still seemed confused, Kate's body language suggested that she was fascinated.

"Can you try moving it around?" she asked to Amanda's surprise. The other girl frowned, closing her eyes as the jaws of the mask seemed to widen. Had that been another design choice which had not been disclosed to Kate? She lowered her head, steadying her breathing as she felt through her entire building, the growing bubbling energy, ready to pour out of her body in an instant. It felt…amazing. Suddenly, Amanda's shadow stretched outwards, Black ooze dripping from the mask's gaping maw as thin wisps of darkness burst from the shadow.

But it didn't last for long. It was only a few moments before Amanda collapsed from the sheer effort of commandeering her own monstrous shadow. She gasped for breath, sliding the mask up as she unwrapped a green candy, before plopping it into her mouth. Thankfully Laughing Jack had made the taste more bearable, throwing in a touch of lime, likely just to fit in with the colour scheme. She sucked on it, feeling her energy being restored to her as Kate and Toby rushed over to help her up.

"Amanda! You alright?" Kate asked worriedly. Amanda grinned before pulling the mask back down, giving both of them a thumbs up.

"I'm feeling great, actually. Man, that was exhilarating!" she rambled aimlessly. "Oh, I still feel giddy!" She frowned suddenly, as a new thought came to mind. "I think the candy made me high. I feel really pumped all of a sudden, and that isn't the mask playing around with my brain." She shrugged it off, putting it to the fact that two of the candies were in her mouth. "Say, shouldn't we start heading back?" she asked them. "I'm hungry. I don't think I've had a proper meal since I've come here."

"Well, get used to it," Kate grumbled. "The only meals we get in the Proxy house are breakfast and dinner. So don't complain about lunchtime. It sucks for all of us." Amanda pouted from behind her mask, but shrugged it off.

"That's fine, I guess. Only got myself to blame for missing breakfast." Toby gave her a questioning look, but averted his eyes once Kate stared glaring at him. "But, uh, we should probably head back anyway. Right?" Amanda tilted her head, waiting for an answer. Neither of the others spoke. "Okay, then. I'm taking that as a yes." Without another word she began walking back to the house, Kate and Toby staring at her in bewilderment.

"I she always so energetic?" Toby asked Kate, who shook her head.

"Nope. It's those stupid candies she's addicted to," she muttered. "I've gotta tell him not to put so much sugar."

"You know that there's no scientific proof–"

"Shut up," she hissed at him. "I've heard it a million times. But there's gotta be something making her act so weird."

"Or maybe it's her shadow," Toby suggested. Kate frowned behind her mask, not taking her eyes off Amanda's figure in the distance. "Think about it. Her shadow is the reason why Amanda is so self-destructive. It's literally tearing her apart every moment she's not under her medication. She's been in this condition for years without even knowing it. But now the mask is taking the strain for her. If her depression was a side effect of her shadow's behaviour, then it's possible that it's not as bad as it was before." She thought about that for a moment, considering the possibility.

"Or she's right, and those candies are making her high."

"You're such a downer," he murmured quietly.

"Hey!" Both of them suddenly realised that Amanda was already way ahead of them, standing impatiently with her arms crossed. "What are you two talking about?" Kate gave Toby an uncertain look, before answering on both their behalf.

"Nothing," she called back. "Don't mind us. You go on ahead." Amanda looked at the two suspiciously, as she lifted the mask high enough for them to see her face.

"You were talking about me, weren't you?" she asked, annoyed that they didn't want to tell her. "You know I don't care, right? If you want me to trust you guys, then stop being so secretive around me."

"Sorry," Kate replied, not sounding apologetic at all. "Just discussing the side-effects of Laughing Jack's candy." Amanda shot her a look which clearly meant that she didn't believe her in the slightest, but chose not to push the argument further than required.

"Fine. Hurry up, though. You guys are so–" Kate's image suddenly blurred, becoming a streak of white as she dashed next to Amanda. She raised an eyebrow, daring her to continue. "…slow. Okay, now tell me how to do that _right now_."

"Years of practice," Kate deadpanned. "Now, I thought you wanted to get home?"

"Fuck you."

"I'm straight."

"That is _not_ what I meant. I'd rather fuck a pigeon." Toby watched the whole scene in bewilderment, his eyes moving whenever one of them started speaking. It was one of the most bizarre conversations that he had ever bore witness to.

"And _how_ would you fuck the pigeon?"

"I _wouldn't_. That's the damn point."

"But you said that you'd rather–"

"I know what I said! Just forget it!" Amanda stormed off, leaving Kate and Toby alone once more. He zoomed up next to her, giving her a questioning glance. She shook her head, not taking her eyes off Amanda.

"She's completely unhinged," she muttered to him. "I think you might be right about her mask. No candy could mess up your head that badly."

"I'm glad we're finally agreeing on something," he said to her, as Amanda treaded back to the Proxy house alone. "This could be a serious problem if it carries on this way."

"Oh, I doubt that. Believe me, in a few hours she'll be back to crying to herself every opportunity she gets. Amanda's shadow only went haywire after Smile did his usual traumatising mojo. Her depression didn't get any worse, but it was still there. If that's true, then the mask won't counteract the effects of her shadow for much longer." Toby considered Kate's words, looking at Amanda worriedly.

"We should probably get back to the house like she said, right?" he asked her. "Slender Man will have our heads if someone snags her along the way." Kate frowned, but nodded in agreement. The two zoomed forwards, their bodies becoming mere blurs as they rushed to catch up with Amanda. They didn't stop until they reached the Proxy house. It was only once they were at the wrought imposing gates that they noticed something was out of place.

"She's not here." They both whirled around, confused as they turned back, eyes landing on Amanda's trail of footprints. But about five metres from the gates the tracks ended, stopping abruptly without any sign of disturbance. "Shit," Kate muttered, looking around wildly for any sign of where Amanda might have disappeared to, but there was nothing to lead them on, nothing to hint to her possible location.

"We shouldn't have let her go ahead." Toby cursed, eyeing the Proxy house. "…we've gotta tell him eventually. Either we do it now, or wait for him to find out." Kate gulped, but joined Toby as he walked past the gates into the Proxy house. This time there was no Slender Man waiting for them, but Jeff was with Eyeless Jack, arguing with each other over something, likely a trivial issue.

"Where's Slender Man?" Kate asked them, though Jeff was the one who actually paid attention to her question. He raised his hand, stopping Eyeless Jack midsentence as he turned to face her.

"Boss man is upstairs. You better not interrupt unless it's important though." He paused, as if considering his next question before saying it out loud. " _Is_ it important?" Kate shivered, rubbing her sleeved absentmindedly.

"Maybe the most important reason ever. Amanda's just vanished into thin air. Her tracks went all the way to the gates, then stopped. It's as if someone teleported her, and I don't think it's Slender Man." This got Eyeless Jack's attention as he tilted his head, lost in thought.

"Another teleporter?" he wondered out loud. "I thought only Slender Men were capable of such feats."

"Perhaps…" Jeff muttered, "But Proxies are given superhuman strength and agility. What's the chance that Amanda just jumped really high up and got stuck in a tree?" He shut up and shrank back once Kate glared at him, but otherwise still seemed to think this was a possibility.

"Let's be real, here." Eyeless Jack raised his arms to get their attention. "Amanda's only been a Proxy for a couple of days. She's not very powerful. She wouldn't have been able to jump higher than a doorway, let alone land in a goddamn tree. There's another explanation for this."

"Another explanation for what?" Everyone turned at the sound of Slender Man's unmistakeable voice, Kate and Toby visibly cringing. The entity was standing on the staircase which led to Amanda's room, his head tilted to the side as he leaned over the handrail. "Something important?"

"You could say that," Eyeless Jack muttered, pointing at Kate and Toby. "According to them, Amanda has vanished without a trace." Slender Man's head swivelled towards them as he climbed down the stairs, tentacles beginning to emerge from his back.

"Is this true?" he asked, his voice dangerously soft as he drew nearer. "Amanda has disappeared, while under _your watch?_ " Kate's body shook, but her voice didn't waver.

"Yes," she admitted, knowing that it would be dangerous to lie to his face. "She went missing, under _my_ watch. Leave Toby out of this." One of Slender Man's pitch black tendrils fell to the ground with a loud splat, before snaking slowly towards Kate.

"Amanda is highly unstable," he drawled. "Unsupervised, she could end up killing herself by accident, and potentially anybody around her. And you're telling me that you let her out of your sight?" The tentacle squirmed around her legs, slithering around them. Kate shivered as the cold appendages met her exposed flesh, but tried her best to hide her evident discomfort.

"I did. I allowed her to stray from my vision, because I was too lost in my own thoughts." Her eyes strayed towards Toby, who was staring at her with a shocked expression. "And that was irresponsible of me, as her friend and supervisor."

"Yes," Slender Man grunted as the tendril fastened tightly around her body, pinning her arms to her sides and holding her in place. "It was _extremely_ irresponsible of you. You allowed Amanda, who may I remind you was _completely defenceless_ , to wander away from your position. In these woods, straying from the path can mean _death_." Kate remained calm as his face hovered intimidatingly close to her own. She could feel the warm air on her cheeks every time he breathed outwards.

"What are you going to do?" she asked him, her voice shaking slightly for the first time since Slender Man had entered the room. "You know that you can't kill me." The being laughed, a second tentacle sliding towards her face through the air.

"No, I can't kill you. But I can do something much worse." The tendril suddenly tapped Kate's mask, causing her to flinch. "I can take off that mask of yours." She visible tensed, breathing quickening as she struggled in his grip.

"Don't," she gasped, feet digging into the carpet. "You can't do this to me. You can't." Everybody watched in shock as a tear slid out from underneath her mask. Kate, who was probably the strongest Proxy who'd ever set foot in this house, was breaking down in front of them. It was an unbelievable sight; for a moment, they all prayed that it wasn't real. But the tentacle began to lift it up, ever so slowly. But as Kate's quivering lips were exposed, a loud rip was suddenly heard. The tentacle uncoiled from her body as she fell to the ground, still shaking. A few feet away from her, another body was trembling even more erratically then her. It was Amanda.

Slender Man rushed over to her as she shuddered, drawing in deep, wavering breaths. Her eyes were darting around wildly as he turned her head towards him, her mouth muttering words that were not heard.

"What happened?" he asked, but for a while she didn't answer. Her cold metal mask was clenched tightly into her hand as she suddenly reached out and grabbed his arm, stuttering wildly.

"She-she…" Her eyes went to Jeff, who was watching the scene in horror. "She…s-said t-t-to…to warn J-Jeff…" she gasped spitting out a glob of black ooze. Everybody drew away from it instinctively – that was, except for Jeff.

"What?" he kneeled next to her, frowning. "What did she say?" Amanda turned to face him, her expression unreadable.

"S-she…said to t-tell you…" she gulped, her grip on the mask tightening. "She said she'd-d c-come for y-you…" Jeff froze, mouth agape as realisation dawned upon him. He staggered backwards, clutching his head.

"No. No, it can't be." He looked around in panic, vision flaring. "We're supposed to be safe here. No one is supposed to know. No one should be able to find us…" All eyes that had been on Amanda swiftly went to him, as he continued to whirl around madly.

"W-What…who is she?" Amanda asked him, attempting to get to her feet but stumbling back instead. "What's her name?"

"She…her name is Jane." Jeff looked at her, then averted her eyes to the floor. "And I may or may not have murdered her friends and family in front of her, and then I may or may not have burned down the house she was in while she was tied up and incapacitated." Amanda blinked in confusion, having seemingly recovered from her encounter with Jane.

"You did that?" she asked in disbelief. "No way."

"Oh, yes I did," Jeff replied in complete seriousness. "I can do a lot of things when I put my mind to it." Amanda stared at him blankly, not quite sure what to think. "Anyways…we've gotta deal with her."

"No shit," Kate muttered, rising to her feet and fixing her mask back into place. She looked at Slender Man, who glared back. He wasn't finished yet; he was just holding back because Amanda was in the room. Otherwise, her mask would have been lying on the floor a while ago. "Yes, Jeff, let's clean up your messed up problems _again_. For what, the _fifth time?_ " Jeff spat at her, but didn't say anything back. He hadn't been in his right mind when he'd destroyed Jane's life, but it didn't change what he'd done. She'd become a killer eventually too, taking out his targets before he could get to them. That was her sick, sadistic method of revenge. She's known that killing was his life blood, so she'd done everything she could to take it away from him.

That was how Slender Man had found him. At the scene of Jane's latest murder, screaming furiously as he stabbed his blade into the already dead body. His mind scattered, spirit broken. But Slender Man had taken him in. Brought him out of his dark place, shown him that there was another path from him than mindless self-destruction. A way that he could use his skills for good, rather than bad. And that had been a miracle in itself.

"Calm down, guys. It's not the end of the world yet." Amanda leant against the handrail, holding her hand to her side. Although Slender Man had found no major injuries on her body, she had several fresh bruises covering her sides and legs. She had slipped the monstrous metal mask back onto her face, her own eyes aligning perfectly with the gaping holes. "Jane, if that's her name, may have beat the living crap out of me, but she was pretty nice when we talked. I'm guessing she's had her share of unpleasant encounters with the lot of you." Her eyes surveyed the small crowd that had gathered; Jeff said nothing, while Kate looked down at the ground. Eyeless Jack started whistling, while Smile looked down at them from the stairs with his flaming eyes.

"Alright, then. So if I, someone who's literally just showed up, tries to reason with her, would I have a better chance of coming across?" She looked at Jeff expectantly, but his eyes were almost instantly cast away. "Come on, talk to me."

"My relationship with Jane…" he began, eyeing Kate wearily, "is a complicated one. I remember the first few times we met after I did what I did, we spent our time burying knives into each other. But the fifth time, we slept together." Amanda frowned, leaning forward a little. "A few hours later, we both went for each other's throats at exactly the same time. But it kept happening. Every few times we met, we'd just…forget we'd ever hated each other. But when I met boss man, we didn't meet anymore. Instead, I fled with him and Kate. She probably isn't too happy about me running off like that. I should be the one to talk to her."

"Well, if you insist." Amanda tightened the strap of her mask, feeling the cold metal pressing against her face. It was already beginning to feel like a second skin to her. She now understood why Kate wore it so lovingly. It gave off a feeling of safety and security that others couldn't provide with their words alone. "But at least don't go alone. From what you've told me, she'll rip you to shreds the first chance she gets. You need someone to watch your back while you play the pacifist."

"Yeah," Jeff muttered. "That would probably be a good idea for when she arrives. Anyone want to volunteer?" No one raised their hand. Smile yapped at him with the smuggest expression a dog could make, before backing off into the hallway. Eyeless Jack silently followed after him, while Kate and Toby left for their rooms. "Well then." He sighed, turning around. "Guess it's gonna be you and me, boss–" He jolted after realising that Slender Man has quietly teleported away moments before he'd turned around. His eyes fell on Amanda, the only person left in the room with him.

"You'll just have to settle for little old me, then." She frowned, though at the same time her mask's mouth widened into a sinister smile. Jeff eyed it nervously, hand itching for the knife at his belt.

"Has anyone told you that you look terrifying when you're wearing that?" he asked. She shifted uncomfortably for a moment, then shook her head.

"No. You'd be the very first." Jeff chuckled, shaking his head.

"Well, intimidation won't be enough. We already know that, seeing as you're already battered and bruised. We need to get you a proper weapon which isn't a switchblade." Amanda chuckled, raising her hands in the air.

"Man, I don't even _have_ a switchblade," she scoffed. "I'd be happy with a goddamn sharpened stick." Jeff shook his head, but grinned.

"Well, then go outside and look around. There's a few thousand sharpened sticks lying on the ground, just waiting to be stepped on. I'm sure you'll find one that won't snap on the first hit." Amanda sighed, resting her head against the handrail.

"Fuck you, Jeff."

"Not the first time I've heard that."

"Suck a dick, Jeff."

"Now, that's a first."

* * *

 **xXx**

 _What are you?_

 _I'm the Slender Man._

As Miller clenched his fingers tightly around the steering wheel in front of him, the conversation he'd shared with the mysterious entity rapidly replayed itself in his mind, over and over. Why was he so worked up about it, apart from the obvious 'I met a paranormal creature' trope? He thought over their talk, shaking his head. Ahead, the traffic light turned green. For a second he sat there, motionless, just staring at the sudden illumination. After a while, he snapped out of it, putting his foot to the gas.

What was it that the Slender Man had told him? That he'd saved Amanda's life? That he was the reason she was still alive, why she didn't want to go back to living in the human world? Then…she was truly tied to him. She was his Proxy now; there was no going back. But if the dammed demon had saved her life and sent her to kill human traffickers, how was he supposed to despise it? Miller knew that murder was never a perfect solution, but in some situations, it was the only way, wasn't it? Sacrifice two, for the sakes of so many others.

How many cruel, horrible fates had Amanda prevented when she'd plunged her bloodstained blades into both of those bodies, of twisted, monsters of men? A couple now lay dead; a police investigation was officially underway, but The Organization had destroyed any physical evidence suggesting Amanda had ever been present, and taken the camera footage. This would be an open and shut case, at least on paper. They'd find someone to blame it on; the _wrong_ someone. Someone angry, someone who knew the truth. Maybe one of their own workers. Someone who'd wanted out.

The feeling made him feel sick, as he pulled into the driveway of his home, right next to the woods. For all the good that the Slender Man may have been trying to do, he was still a manipulative creature. He'd caused a ton of bad as well; how many people had died by his hands? Why couldn't he have just left those tips, like Miller had suggested?

 _If they were still alive, they could have commandeered the rest of their ring of prison._

That was what the no-faced demon had told him, before he'd disappeared. A fact which would haunt Miller for the rest of his life. Prison didn't always contain a person. Sometimes, that was where they were the most free. To be completely honest, the Slender Man was just doing Miller's job better than he did, and making sure that people got what they _really_ deserved. In a way, he was a necessary evil.

But that didn't change that he wouldn't allow Amanda to be manipulated by the dark creature. He would happily put a bullet through his head if she'd be released from his control. No matter what it took, he'd bring her back, _and_ keep her alive. Somehow.

 _Kill the Slender Man. Take Amanda home. Find a way to keep her alive. Then we can continue living life. And forget everything._

* * *

 **xXx**

Amanda ended up borrowing one of Kate's old knives; the blade itself wasn't very long, but it was the only one with a handle which fitted her hand perfectly, and the edge was sharp enough to substitute for its short range. She'd accidentally pricked her finger when picking it up, and while it hadn't drawn blood, it had hurt _a lot_.

Amanda fastened her mask, tightening it until the cold metal refused to budge when she pushed it. Every time she breathed, a cloud of thin mist escaped the gaping maw of the mask. Turning her head, she looked at Jeff as they stood at the imposing gates of the Proxy house. His hood was pulled as far down as it wold go, his makeup covered face twisted into a grimace.

"Should, uh, I be worried?" she asked, receiving a disgruntled snort as an answer.

"Do you even need to ask?" he shot back. "She made quick work of you."

"She caught me off guard," Amanda mumbled, but if Jeff had heard her he didn't show it. Both of them stiffened as a chilling wind suddenly brushed between them, causing Amanda to shiver. "She's here, isn't she?" Jeff nodded, narrowing his eyes as a figure emerged from the shadows of the trees.

Her face was bleached white, long hair pitch black. She wore a white dress, though the hem was covered in dust and dirt from the forest trail. As she walked towards them Amanda could feel the power radiating from her, amplified by the gleaming knife which she clutched in her right hand. Her face was fixed into an eternal snarl, as her eyes focused on Jeff's hunched over form.

"Jeff." It wasn't a greeting on her part; to Amanda, it sounded more like an acknowledgement of his existence. Jeff nodded back, tightening his grip on his own knife.

"Jane. It's good to see you." The woman laughed at his words, tossing her head back. Amanda was sure that if Jeff hadn't done what he'd done, she would have turned out beautiful. It was then that she began to understand what exactly Jeff had done to Jane's life. How he had really ended it all. It had all began when he'd tried to make her beautiful. But if he hadn't, she would have turned out that way without his help. Now she was stuck to be like this forever.

" _Good?_ " she scoffed, spitting at his feet. "When has it ever been good to see _you_ , Jeff?" The killer glared back at her, but didn't reply, his breathing quickening. Amanda looked at him in concern, but Jane noticed her before she could ask whether he was alright. "You again." She looked at Jane, who snarled angrily. "I told you to stay out of this."

"I would have," she admitted, "if there had been anyone else. But I was the only one left."

"To guard his sorry ass?" Jane snickered. "You're better off leaving, honey. You shouldn't be forced into things like this. Not the way Jeff did to me." She shot him another glare, inching forwards. "This is your final warning, girl. Go home."

"Now you've done it," Amanda muttered. "Now you've _really_ done it." Jane looked at her in confusion as she took a step forwards, eyes fixed ahead. "When I first agreed to this, it was because it was the only place where I could truly be happy. My old home…it wasn't a good place. My mother…she treated me like an idiot. And now," she said, clenching her fingers around the handle of her knife, "you're treating me like one too. And that's not something I'm going to tolerate."

"What are you going to do?" Jane asked mockingly. "You went down after one blow, the last time we fought."

"Yes," Amanda agreed, "I did. Because you caught me off guard. But now…you can't. _I'm_ the one with the advantage." Before Jane could react, Amanda's shadow swelled, snakelike tendrils bursting from the ground and whipping at the air. Jane looked around, eyes widening as the dark tentacles lashed out at her.

She leapt off the ground, slashing her knife at one of the tendrils, then panicking as the powerful blow had no effect. Amanda smirked in satisfaction, allowing her power to surge through her, emerging in a relentless storm of energy. Jane had by now realised that her attacks were doing nothing against the tentacles themselves, and instead put all her energy into getting to Amanda. It wasn't an easy task, to say the least. Jeff watched in awe as one of the tendrils finally wrapped itself around Jane's leg, lifting her up into the air. The woman struggled as she hung there helplessly, screaming insults at Amanda and Jeff, but neither one batted an eyelid.

"Are you going to behave?" Amanda asked. "Or am I going to have to keep you hanging upside down for another few hours before you start behaving?" Jane looked miffed, but nodded reluctantly as Amanda smiled. "Great! Now, I'm going to let go." She glanced at Jeff, who nodded, understanding what he had to do. "Make sure you catch me." As soon as she released Jane, every tentacle lashing in the wind retracted back into Amanda's bloated shadow, which retreated back to its original size. The girl fell to the side, every bit of energy in her body instantly drained. Jeff moved to catch her, barely keeping her head from hitting the ground. She let out a contented sigh as Jane walked over to them, apparently pacified, at least for now.

"Is she alright?" she asked. "A feat like that would have taken extreme amounts of power." Jeff shrugged, adjusting his arms so that she was in a more comfortable position.

"She'll be alright. But, uh…" he looked up at her, stony faced. "We need to talk."

"No shit," she scoffed, kneeling next to Amanda and brushing her cheek. The girl moaned a little, twitching in her sleep. "We should deal with her first. Can't have a child's body on our hands. Or at least, not another one." She sent a piercing glare at Jeff, who lowered his eyes to the ground.

"Sorry."

"Sorry doesn't cut it. You killed _everyone_. _You_ are the reason why _I_ became a monster."

"And now I recognise that," Jeff answered, his expression disturbingly calm. "I take full responsibility for everything I've done to you. And I'm sorry." Jane blinked at him, clearly surprised by the apology.

"What the hell happened to you?" she asked, confused by his behaviour. "You're so different."

"Life," he answered. "Life happened to me."

"More specifically?"

"More specifically, I was put back together." Jane raised an eyebrow, but didn't comment, silently urging for him to continue. "One day, I screwed up. The cops got to me; put a good number of bullets into me. I dragged myself into the woods, my legs useless, losing consciousness real fast. But then Slender Man arrived. Took me to his house, and sorted me out. Both physically and mentally. He gave me something else to focus my anger on, helped me see clearly. He healed me, Jane. And I reckon he could heal you too." Jane was speechless, her face expressionless as her eyes were drawn to Amanda's unconscious form, the metal mask still obscuring her face.

"You really think he could heal me?" she asked. "Like, _really_ heal me?"

"It's worth a shot." Jeff shrugged, standing up, causing Amanda's limbs to dangle from his grasp.

"Did he heal her?" Jane questioned, causing Jeff to suddenly stop, turning back to face her.

"He healed all of us." That was the end of their conversation. Jane followed wordlessly behind Jeff as they entered the house, and were greeted by the sight of Slender Man and Kate both standing in the lobby. Kate instantly rushed forward in worry upon seeing Amanda, hastily scooping her out of Jeff's arms and rushing to her room. Jane watched this scene with interest, but quickly her attention went back to Slender Man–or more specifically, his face.

"Jane," he greeted welcomingly. "Jeff has told me a lot about you." She nodded in reply, but said nothing. Slender Man shrugged, quickly motioning for Jeff to leave. The man did so without question, eyes darting towards Jane one last time before he ascended silently up the stairs. "Was Amanda unconscious because you beat her into it, or because of herself?"

"Herself," Jane answered quietly. "She made a bunch of giant tentacles come out of the ground. Creepiest thing I've ever seen."

"She's powerful," Slender Man agreed. "But extremely unstable. When she agreed to come with me, it was because I had a cure for her condition. I do not know if she would have done so otherwise, but she seems to like it here."

"She told me that," Jane said. "She called this place the only place she felt truly happy. Home."

"That's good," Slender Man muttered. "That's good." Jane sighed looking up at him wearily.

"Jeff said that you could heal me," she said causing him to shrug, head tilting a little.

"Maybe I could," he answered cryptically. "It all depends on what happened."

"What happened?" Jane repeated, confused.

"I want you to tell me," Slender Man began," what happened that night. From _your_ perspective." Jane sighed, taking a deep breath.

"Well, it all started when this new family moved in across the street…"


	4. Second Name

**Chapter 4**

 **Second Name**

The day when Amanda received her second proper assignment started the way every day did. She woke up early in the morning, just as the sun was rising, slipping on a black tank top and matching pair of pants. Not long after, Laughing Jack was at her door, telling her to come down. And then she had gone downstairs, where Kate was waiting for her, and they had spent an hour outside before having breakfast with everyone else. Her time with Kate was usually spent selecting a weapon for herself – Kate had insisted that Amanda find whichever weapon suited her best, which led to hours upon hours of doing nothing but swinging weapon after weapon until they both decided to call it a day. Kate was honestly surprised by the amount of axes Amanda had thrown into the trees – one or two had actually fallen down. But today at breakfast, Slender Man had arrived late. Very late.

Most days, Slender Man and his Proxies would eat outside, just on the edge of the woods. Eyeless Jack sat within the woods themselves, mostly so that the blood splatter from the organs he ate wouldn't stain the grass of the training fields. Amanda and Kate hung around at the table where the former had designed her mask. Since Jane's arrival that day, Amanda had worn the mask to the point that it felt like a second skin. She only ever took it off whenever she ate, or while she was sleeping. She felt more comfortable knowing that she wouldn't suddenly lash out at the people around her, thanks to the mask helping her control her abilities. That didn't mean she didn't have to take her medication, of course – she still consumed it at the same intervals of time, twice a day, without fail. Kate had taken to lacing her water with her medication, which Amanda hadn't exactly been against until realising that the combination made it taste even worse than before. Kate still did it anyway.

On that particular day, Slender Man was not the only one not present – Jane wasn't there either. For the past few weeks, both the tall man and the girl had been spending time trying to restore her to her former self. The attempts had been half successful, with Slender Man being able to supress Jane's violent nature, but not change her appearance. Amanda had no clue what they were doing behind closed doors, but Jane seemed fine with whatever it was. That morning though, the two hadn't shown up for breakfast at all. That wouldn't have been a concern, if not for the fact that they arrived halfway through the meal, every day.

"Does this seem strange to you?" Amanda asked Kate as she slipped her mask back on. "They're never this late to breakfast." Kate shrugged absentmindedly as she sucked her food through a straw. She never took her mask off, even during meal times. If anything, it only made Amanda more curious as to what she was trying to hide.

"They're probably trying something new," she suggested, which didn't make Amanda any less worried. If anything, she grew even more concerned.

"And that doesn't concern you in the slightest?"

"Slender Man knows what he's doing."

"Do _we_ know what he's doing?" Kate sighed, shaking her head.

"Just trust him, Amanda. He's helped you, hasn't he? He'll help Jane." Amanda knew she was right, but she couldn't help being worried. Bad things always happened when people were late. Always.

"Hey, Amanda." The girl in question raised her head as Smile approached them, trotting forward in near silence. He gave them both a sullen look, his head dropping. "When do you guys think he's going to be back with Jane?" Amanda only shrugged in response, unsure of the answer herself. If they took any longer, she might start legitimately panicking.

It didn't take much longer for the tall man to arrive. He appeared out of the shadows, Jane walking next to him with a bored look on her face. However, everyone noticed how tense their leader was – it radiated off his body like an aura. He looked at Amanda as he approached, his movements stiff and forced.

"Amanda," he greeted. "How are you doing today?" She blinked at him in confusion, eyes briefly straying towards Kate before going back to his face.

"Alright," she told him. "Something up?"

"There's always something up," he grumbled at her, though not aggressively. "Listen, I need you to go into town tomorrow. Have you chosen a weapon yet?" Amanda gulped at that, fiddling with her hands.

"No," she muttered quietly. "Not yet." Surprisingly, her words didn't seem to disappoint him. He simply shrugged his shoulders, as if expecting those exact words.

"That's fine. Knives aren't for everyone. But I'm going to need you to have one by tomorrow. Unfortunately, you have to be the one going in. This is a job for a teenager." She didn't bother asking why Kate wasn't going instead – there was no way the girl was going to take off her mask. She clung to it like a lifeline.

"I'll try," she said quietly in response, looking back at Kate. "Wait a sec. Tomorrow is…Halloween. Oh. I see why you need me." Slender Man nodded at her, before quickly disappearing. Everyone stared at the space that he'd occupied for a few seconds, before resuming whatever they had been doing before his arrival. "I'm screwed," Amanda whispered to Kate in a panicky tone. "There's no way I'm going to choose a weapon before tomorrow. We've gone through the entire armoury."

"We've gone through most of it," Kate admitted. "But, uh, there's still one more thing in there, remember? Hopefully it doesn't end up killing you." Amanda shivered, wondering what exactly Kate had meant by that. Then again, she supposed that all weapons were dangerous when you didn't know how to handle them. Any blade could cut you if you weren't careful enough. If you didn't focus, it wouldn't be hard to shoot yourself in the foot with any kind of firearm. Holding a weapon was both an advantage and a handicap.

After they'd finished eating, Amanda and Kate both headed back inside the house to the back room, which was where the Proxies stored every weapon they came across. The room itself was lit by a single light bulb hanging from a rusted chain, which flickered violently whenever someone turned it on, and always seemed on the verge of exploding. The bulb itself hardly helped to illuminate the room, which was not necessarily large in comparison to some of the other rooms in the house, but was definitely long, and so the miniscule light projected from the light source only brightened about half of the room. The walls were cluttered with blades of all kinds and sizes. Swords as large as Amanda's arm and throwing knives no larger than the palm of her hand. Axes that could easily take off a man's head, and small hatchets whose wielder would be lucky to sever a finger. Amanda and Kate had already gone through everything which hung on the walls – all that were left were small boxes constructed of wood, plastic or a sturdy, black material which even Kate couldn't recognise.

Of those boxes, they'd worked through all but one, a wooden box in the corner of the room which Amanda had discovered only by pure luck – she'd knocked over several other boxes, revealing the container which had been buried under the mammoth pile. Kate had taken one look at it, said, "yeah, we're done for today," and then they'd gone upstairs and went to bed. Now as the two approached it the next day, Amanda was beginning to dread that the box was empty. Perhaps they'd wasted all their time for nothing, and inside there was only settled dust from a weapon which no longer existed.

"Hey." Amanda flinched as she felt Kate's hand resting on her shoulder. "Stop worrying, you'll be fine." She smiled a little, just a little, as she felt Kate's fingers squeeze her flesh lightly.

"Thanks," she whispered back, and then she stepped towards the wooden box, grabbing it by the sides and pulling it out of the corner. She wiped a fine layer of dust off its lid, watching it fall to the ground. Seeing Kate's nod of approval, she unlatched the lock, swinging the lid upwards before frowning in confusion. Kate peered over her shoulder, jerking back immediately as soon as she laid eyes on the contents.

"…the fuck?" she muttered as she stared at the weapon inside. It was composed of three main segments; a metal ring; a long chain; and a small blade with another, even smaller point coming off the side, almost like a hook. "That's a kyoketsu-shoge." When Amanda gave her a blank stare, she continued, "a ninja weapon."

"Oh," Amanda murmured as she stared at the chain, which was easily at least ten feet. "…please tell me you know how to use this thing." Kate sighed, stepping back and shaking her head. Her mask glinted in the light, causing strange shapes to be reflected on the glossy surface.

"Nope, I'm sorry. My limited knowledge on that thing comes from Wikipedia. You're basically on your own."

"Fuck." Amanda pulled at her hair, staring at the blade in worry. "Well, I've gotta try, I guess."

"No shit." Kate grumbled. "You wanna take this thing outside? It's probably not gonna be able to do much in here, at least until you learn how to use it.

" _If_ I do," Amanda corrected as she grabbed the metal ring and the middle of the chain. As she lifted the weapon out of the box. Almost instantly, the blade swung and cut her arm, causing her to curse and almost drop it. "Maybe…I should carry it in the box."

"Probably," Kate muttered as she watched her friend cautiously, yet hastily, place the kyoketsu-shoge back into the box, slamming the lid. She giggled a little at Amanda's tense form, her shoulders heaving and her hands still shaking a little. "It's just a scratch. Don't worry about it."

"Right," Amanda grumbled as she grabbed the box and shot Kate an irritated look. "Don't worry about it. _Sure._ I'm going to wake up tomorrow and find out it's infected." As the two went back outside, Amanda was surprised to find the field empty. She and Kate were the only Proxies out. "Where is everyone?"

"They respect you," Kate told her as she set the box containing the weapon on the table where they'd eaten breakfast. "They know you're worried, so they decided to give you space." Amanda thought about that, remembering all of the stares she'd received at breakfast when Slender Man had left. Was that respect? It was an odd form of it, that was for sure, but as long as it was genuine, she supposed she'd accept it.

"That's thoughtful of them," she commented lamely as she opened the box. She eyed the bladed weapon with scrutiny, trying to figure out how it was meant to be used. Earlier when she'd accidentally cut herself simply by taking it out of the box, she'd become all too aware of what the weapon was capable of. She wouldn't be treating it carelessly again. She cautiously grabbed the metal ring, this time stepping back as she pulled it out and watched the chain slowly unravel, clanging quietly as it slinked out with the grace and fluidity of a snake silently slithering through grass. Although Amanda hadn't noticed before, the blade seemed to be tinged a dark red at the edges, though she doubted that the colouring was due to blood. The weapon likely would have been cleaned after each use, she reasoned silently. She let it dangle for a couple of seconds, with one hand holding the ring and the other clenching the length of chain, keeping the small blade from coming into contact with the floor.

"So," she said after sometime, "how the fuck am I supposed to use this thing?" She stared at the metal ring, somehow doubtful that holding it was a very good idea. She was pretty sure that if she pressed hard enough, she'd cut herself even worse than she did with the blade.

"We can try YouTube," Kate suggested, though she sounded hesitant to speak her mind. Amanda turned around and stared at her, the jaw of her mask beginning to widen.

"You guys have Wi-Fi here?" she asked incredulously. "In a fucking _forest_?"

"…yeah?"

"What the fuck?"

"Um…you didn't see the modem in the hallway?"

"Which hallway?"

"Your one."

"Bullshit. That's bullshit."

"No it isn't. It's been there ever since Jeff stole it from a store while escaping from a mercenary. I'm not lying. Anyone can tell you the story." Amanda huffed, shaking her head in disbelief as they walked back into the house.

"And I've been living her for more than a month…shit."

The two ended up watching videos for hours, and Laughing Jack ended up having to deliver lunch and dinner to Amanda's room, where they were watching the videos from Kate's laptop (which Jeff had also stolen from that same store) and practicing with the weapon. Amanda's eyes came closer to completely closing with each video they finished, eventually falling asleep and collapsing with her mouth hanging open and her mask slipping off her face. Kate would have laughed if not for the fact that the brunette was now pinning her to the bed with her body. She let out a long, drawn out 'Motherfucker!' before finally attempting to move the girl's body off of her. She didn't budge after two minutes, which Kate figured had something to do with her shadows anchoring her in the position. After another, even drawn out profanity (Fuck this fucking bullshit!), Kate successfully wriggled out from underneath Amanda's body, though the girl seemed to now be suspended in mid-air in the same position she'd been in for the last five minutes.

It was then, as Kate stared at her friend's suspended body, that she remembered Amanda not taking her meds.

"Oh, fuck." She carefully slipped out the door, before instantly breaking into a sprint. "Jack! Jack, where's Amanda's goddamned meds?" The clown in question, who was currently downstairs and in the middle of explaining to Smile the benefits of vegetarianism, only frowned in response.

"Why the hell would I have them? They're all with Slender Man."

"Ah…" Kate clenched her fists, almost pulling at her hair before realising that her mask might come off if she did. "Shit. Gotta find him, then. You know where he is?"

"Check outside," Smile suggested offhandedly. "Like, ninety-nine out of a hundred times that dude is outside in the woods, I swear." Kate narrowed her eyes at him, but followed his advice as she moved to exit the house, only for the tall man himself to teleport into the space where she'd just been standing.

"I heard my name," he said nonchalantly as Kate tensed her body. "What happened?"

"Amanda forgot to take her meds," Kate told him with worry, causing him to facepalm.

"Oh, of course she did," he grumbled. "Alright then. Her room?" At Kate's nod, he instantly teleported away, causing her to sigh in relief as she saw him vanish. Amanda would be okay. Although, the whole situation scratched at that part of her brain which tended to be more observant while she wasn't really thinking about anything. How had Amanda avoided having a shadow outburst? Had it been her mask, supressing her power and allowing her to control it? Kate honestly wasn't sure what to think. Amanda was an enigma, in so many ways that her brain hurt just thinking about them.

"I need a drink," Kate muttered out loud as she headed up to her room, where she knew she kept the bottle of scotch on top of the drawer. "Big day for Amanda tomorrow, after all."

"Yup," Smile echoed quietly as Laughing Jack continued his boring lecture. "Big day."

 **xXx**

When Amanda woke up the next day, the sun hadn't even begun peeking out over the darkened forest. The moon was nowhere to be seen either. As she stretched her limbs and sat up in her bed, she suddenly became aware of the wetness on her lips. It faintly tasted like…

"My fucking meds," Amanda muttered to herself as she looked out her window, the curtains drawn back. "Shit. And today's Halloween." The previous night. Amanda had admitted that despite barely trying to use the kyoketsu-shoge, it had felt good to just hold it in her hand. She wasn't sure if that was just her being desperate and her brain concluding that she needed to choose the weapon, but Kate had taken that remark as the okay sign to go ahead. And then they'd gone on that stupid video watching spree, which had lasted more than half the day. She only prayed that it had been worth it. She quietly changed out of her clothes from yesterday, which now reeked of sweat. She pulled out another, near identical outfit out of her drawer and slipped it on, the only difference being that this one was dark blue. Finally, she grabbed her black hoodie from its place in the drawer, and tugged it over her head, her hair messily falling around her shoulders. Slender Man had said it was a job for a teenager. Job for a teenager on Halloween? Yeah, she'd definitely need to blend in, that was for sure.

Once she was satisfied with her appearance, she grabbed her mask, pulling the strap over her head and pressing her hair down in the process. She didn't bother waiting for Laughing Jack's inevitable arrival – she simply grabbed the box containing the kyoketsu-shoge, opened the door of her room, and went outside. To her surprise, Slender Man was outside on the field, almost as if he had been waiting for her. His suit flapped in the wind as he turned towards her, his tentacles poking out slightly over his back.

"So I take it you chose a weapon," he said, motioning towards the box she had tucked under her arm. Amanda tilted her head, eyes passing over it before going back to him.

"Yeah," she confirmed, her voice flat and monotone. "It was the last thing in there, too. Ridiculous, huh?"

"Mm." He crossed his arms, his form suddenly going tense. "Fight with me." Behind her mask, Amanda's eyes widened.

"W-What?" she sputtered in shock. "You want me…to…"

"Oh, don't worry," Slender Man said in a nonchalant tone. "Every Proxy here has fought me after choosing their weapon. It's not as if I'll kill you. If you fail today, you can try tomorrow. It just means that a serial rapist will get away." Amanda felt her eye twitching at the stinging comment, her hands clenching into fists. She didn't notice the doors of the Proxy House slowly swinging open, or the other Proxies exiting and lining up to watch her with interest. Eyeless and Laughing Jack, both looking on with their heads tilted to the side, as if pondering something. Smile staring with his face locked in a grimace. Toby, Jeff, and Jane off to the side, their faces expressionless. And Kate standing in the middle, biting her lip and pressing her nails into the palm of her hand. Praying that Amanda wouldn't fail.

Silently Amanda placed the box before her on the ground, bending forward and unlocking the clasps. She held the dagger in one hand, the middle of the length of chain in the other. The weapon clinked quietly, as she slowly began to move the chain in a circular motion, the movement growing larger as the metal circle began to swing over and over again, until it began to spin like a sideways top on the end of the chain. And then she let it shoot forth, the ring zooming towards the faceless man with the speed of a bullet. He barely moved until the very last second, teleporting away and reappearing a few metres to the left. Amanda growled, jumping off the ground and swinging the ring over her head then moving her hand further down the chain. The ring barely grazed Slender Man's face before he was gone once more, his black tendrils exploding from his back like a group of hungry snakes. He's recognised the threat she posed with the weapon, and now it was time to retaliate. But Amanda wasn't done yet either. Her own shadowy appendages shot up from the ground as they darted towards their target, barely missing as Amanda swung the blade in a horizontal arc which sent her opponent teleporting backwards in order to evade the blow.

"You display prowess with this weapon in your hand," Slender Man said with an air of interest, "yet you only laid your eyes upon it yesterday. How is this?"

"The shadows help me," Amanda whispered as she grabbed the ring with one hand and then flung the dagger forth. Shadowed copies of the blade branched out of the ground, flying in seemingly random directions as Slender Man was forced to dodge repeatedly, teleporting backwards and forwards as blackened chains whipped through the air and Amanda stood fixed in her place, her shadow looming at least ten times larger than it should have. Slender Man reached out with one of his tendrils, the slimy appendage grabbing the dagger in the air and causing the shadows to stop. However, Amanda was no longer in front of him as she had been earlier. Where had she–?

If Slender Man had a mouth, he would have choked. His knees buckled underneath him and his tendrils extended completely from the panic as Amanda quickly zoomed around him, wrapping the chain around his neck. She gasped as she tugged one last time, thought the action barely did anything. She knew that in a real fight she would have died in seconds. But at that moment, she knew that the fight was over. She knew she had passed.

As the tall man teleported out of the grip of the chain Amanda felt herself slump to the floor, her energy drained. A small gout of dust burst from the ground as the man's tendrils struck the earth, teleporting in front of her.

"You're ready," he said with finality, as Amanda felt herself begin to smile. "Meet me here again in an hour. I have things to prepare." And then the tall man was gone again. Gone with the wind, Amanda still on her knees, head pounding. She hadn't won, but she'd passed, and passing was good. If tonight was any easier than that fight she'd just had, the job would be simple. But right now, she could barely think. She just wanted to lie down.

"Amanda!" The girl in question turned wearily as Kate ran forward, pulling her into a hug. She froze briefly at the sudden contact, but slowly relaxed into it as her breathing steadied. "You did it. You passed."

"Mm," was all she managed to let out, but it was enough. Kate gave her a wink, before helping her to her feet. "Tired," she mumbled as Kate helped her stumble back to the house.

"You'll be fine," she said gently. "You just need to lie down for a while, and then you'll be ready for tonight." Amanda groaned, remembering why she'd taken the test in the first place. She had an _assignment_. She would have been ecstatic if not for how tired she felt. But, well, it _was_ an assignment. Even if her last one probably would have resulted in her death if not for pure dumb luck, she'd still enjoyed the thrill of it to an extent. She wondered what regular kids would think of her, getting a rush out of almost dying. _Weird fetish you've got there_ , she thought to herself jokingly.

"If not for the shadows, I would have failed that test," Amanda murmured to Kate as the other girl helped her up the stairs. Her feet kept slipping from beneath her every few steps, causing Kate to wobble. "I'm worried about tonight."

"Don't worry about it," Kate told her as they finally reached the second floor. "He's told me a little about your assignment. It's just some asshole who thinks he's got the right to have any girl he wants. He's throwing a party tonight, at his house – that's the reason why you need to go. When people see faces, they trust more. And–"

"There's no way you're taking off your mask," Amanda guessed, cutting her off. "I get it, no problem. I understand." The 'mostly' didn't need to be said. No one understood Kate, though everyone tried their best to do so. She was just as weird as Amanda was.

"Anyways, it's like I said," Kate muttered. "You'll be fine. But, err, there's one more thing we have to do."

"What would that be?" Amanda asked, rubbing her arms as they reached her room, Kate opening the door for her.

"You've gotta make a decision – potentially two," Kate began, helping her make her way over to the bed and sit down. "They're gonna give you a name. You can let them choose it for you, or you can decide yourself. After this, your mask will be recognised."

"…I'll choose," Amanda said quietly. She leaned forward, whispered in Kate's ear, and then promptly fell back onto the bed. The other girl left without another word. Kate met Slender Man in the hallway – for a while they said nothing, walking alongside each other in silence. When they reached the stairs, both stopped.

"Did she choose?" the no-faced man asked, Kate nodding in reply. "Her name, then?" Kate gave him a lopsided look through her mask, then began walking down the stairs.

"Iron Maiden."


	5. Trick

**It took me a while, but I made it.**

 **Thanks for being so patient with me. I'm gonna work on LMB and a Christmas Oneshot like last year before heading back to Hello World Arc 2.**

 **Chapter 5**

 **Trick**

Miller scowled as he navigated the brightly lit street, whilst a group of three teenagers crossed the road in front of him, dressed in various colorful costumes as bags and baskets of candy hung from their hands. Almost every house was covered in decorations—bats, jack-o'-lanterns and plastic gravestones, with mechanical skeletons crudely cackling from their hunched positions over the faux stones. And then there were the children. Children everywhere. Big and small, wearing masks and long flowing robes, striped jumpsuits and whatever mad manner of clothing kids seemed to thin was appropriate for Halloween. If he'd been on duty, he'd be arresting half the stuff they were carrying around. Whether those chainsaws were fake or not, someone would have their eye taken out by them by the end of the night.

But that wasn't his concern right now. He was more focused on the figure he'd seen maneuvering their way through the densely packed crowd. The figure looked like Amanda.

It'd been a while since he'd last seen her. But that figure in the crowd in the dark hoodie… it had to be her. She was wearing a mask, and a terrifying one at that, but that wasn't enough to conceal her identity. The hoodie was a dead ringer. And Miller knew the girl well enough to recognize the way that she walked. The slinky, yet somehow stiff movements were distinctive. Yep, that was Amanda, alright.

A kid in a Ghostface costume accidentally bumped into her, causing her to whirl back briefly to look at him, before continuing to weave through the crowd. The slight glimpse he got of her hair all but confirmed her identity. Miller cursed as the car in front of him suddenly stopped, letting out a group of kids, all of them dressed as various horror slashers. Jason, Freddy Kruger, Michael Myers… did parents even care what they let their kids watch these days?

Amanda appeared to be watching the children as they got out of the car before her attention went to the car itself. It was just Miller's luck that she looked a little more to the left. And she laid her eyes on him. The two of them were completely still for a few moments. Miller reached for the door handle, and Amanda took off. Miller opened the door, abandoning his car in favor of pursuing Amanda on foot, to the protests of the cars behind him. The girl was far too agile—she casually vaulted over a wooden fence, unrepentantly kicking off a kid's toy crown with one of her legs. The kid screeched something unholy as Miller passed him in pursuit of the masked girl. She didn't look back, just kept on running. She crossed the road, sliding over the hood of a car and jumping over a kid who'd fallen on the footpath. Miller had no hope of catching up with her. Not like this.

Amanda proceeded to push aside two girls dressed as princesses, ignoring their cries of protest before vanishing behind a large tree… and not coming out on the other side.

 _Fuck._

He'd known she had abilities. But… teleportation?

That was just bullshit. And if Amanda was hiding behind the tree, he'd eat his hat.

When he got home, of course.

But no. She definitely wasn't. The crowd kept walking, and the space behind the tree was most definitely not occupied. Amanda was gone again, vanished into the shadows.

It took him only a few more seconds to realize that as she'd walked through the crowd, it had been in the direction of her house. It took him another few seconds to realize that she might actually be _going_ there, no matter how obvious it was. Another second was spent pondering what she might be doing, and then he was running again. He ignored the pain in his chest, his gasping breaths as he maneuvered around men and women, teens and toddlers, baskets of candy and plastic props, Halloween decorations and leafless trees. His feet crunched against the thick carpet of orange, red and yellow, highlighted further by the setting sun. Someone from behind him tried to grab hold of his jacket; he ripped them off, continuing in pursuit of Amanda. He didn't have time for such trivial matters. He was looking for Amanda, and if she was where he thought she was…

He saw her house. Standing, quiet, alone, undecorated. A single smattering of white in the middle of a rainbow. Miller ran, the crowd shouted, his hand knocked a young child's candy bowl out of their hands. Their cries could still be heard as he continued to navigate the flood of faces and masks, grinning goblins, eloquent fairies, blood smattered killers and all other sorts of unworldly creatures. A hand reached out—he knocked it aside. He reached the front yard, the house untouched, and the grass growing wild and twisted. And he saw the shadow in the window.

Slowly, Miller crept closer to the door, paying close attention to the shadow.

 _That's too still to be alive._

Was Amanda even alive, at this point? She was the Slender Man's Proxy. Were those even alive? Or were they long gone?

The shadow in the window moved slowly as if turning its head towards him. And then it froze. Just for a second or two, maybe. He imagined the old clock inside the house, ticking and ticking as they stared at each other. The shadow tilted. Miller inched forwards. And then it shot upwards. Miller ran for the door, thinking that Amanda was going to escape.

But then there was a single click, the sliding of a latch, metal against metal, and Amanda was standing in the open doorway, hood down, hair brushed out of her face, and the grinning mask dangling precociously from her fingers.

"Well? Are you going to come in?" It was so… so strange. Her voice didn't _sound_ any different. And yet he felt as if the person talking to him was far older and mature than the scared girl he'd talked too not long ago. The one who cowered and whimpered and lived with her terrible, abusive mother, but kept silent so that things wouldn't get worse for her. She didn't look so scared anymore.

Silently, Miller walked the last few steps, Amanda casually stepping aside as if letting in an old friend.

 _Is that what she thinks we are?_

Miller had never been able to help her. Not with the abuse, not with her other problems… but he could help her now.

If only she would let him.

 **xXx**

Amanda closed the door, the sound of the sliding latch and the loud click punctuating the silence as Chief Miller stared, confused, worried. Misunderstanding everything. She could see it in his eyes, from the moment she'd noticed him following her. She shouldn't have run, really. She'd known he'd find her, known he'd figure out where she was going. And she'd wanted to talk to him, hadn't she? After all, the man had tried his best.

"Why were you following me?" she asked, tracking Chief Miller's eyes with her own. Her fingers gripped the mask tighter. The man breathed deeply, slightly lowering herself to match her height better. He was going to try and manipulate her, try to come across as more friendly. "Don't do that. I don't have time for your mind games—if you want to talk to me, you talk to me the same way you'd talk to anybody. You say your piece, and then you leave. So say it. What do you want?" The Chief shifted uncomfortably back to his original height, before sighing.

"Look, Amanda—"

"Don't call me that." Her voice was quiet, laced with a cold tension. She gritted her teeth as her fingers tightened even more around the rim of the mask. She felt her shadow beginning to shift, ever so slightly. "Not here. Not while I'm out."

"What?"

"Don't call me that."

"No, I mean, what do you mean when you say that you're out?"

 _Oh._

 _You idiot._

"That doesn't concern you."

"I'm pretty sure it does."

"No," Amanda said, shaking her head. "It _doesn't_. It concerns me and all other affected parties. Those don't include _you_ , Chief Miller. Actually, you haven't answered my first question. Why the _fuck_ were you following me?"

"I wasn't, at first. I didn't even know you'd be there."

"Not an explanation."

"Amanda, don't make this harder than this needs to be." The girl laughed, shaking her head.

"Me? _I'm_ making this harder than this needs to be? Hate to break it to you Chief, but I don't see myself doing anything to make this harder. As far as I can tell, I'm asking you a question, and you're trying to avoid it. I don't like that." Amanda let the dagger emerge from the shadows within her right sleeve. It flew out in a single fluid motion, her hand catching it before it went too far. The chain swung as the metal ring fell into her other hand. "Now, answer the question." She moved the ring to the hand holding the dagger, fingers shifting to make room before something else fell into her hand.

"Amanda—wait, is that a whetstone?" he asked as Amanda began repetitively scraping the blade over the stone. She nodded, before letting the stone fall out of her grasp. It quickly fell to the ground, swallowed up by her shadow, which reared up to envelop it in darkness before reverting to its regular state.

"Oh, don't worry," she said when she saw the concern on his face. "This isn't for you. I'm just getting ready."

"Is that why you're out here? To kill more people?" Amanda frowned.

"You were called in for that? Fuck." She allowed the blade to dangle from its chain, absentmindedly swinging it back and forth by her side like a pendulum. She walked past Chief Miller, on her way to the backyard. "He didn't mention that to me. But hey, it wouldn't have made much of difference, I guess."

"Amanda," he said as he followed after her, "what are you going to do?"

"Like I told you, it doesn't concern you." Amanda opened the door to the backyard, taking in the withering plants, the uncut grass. She slipped her mask on, pulling the strap behind her head. Shadows leaked from her eyes, spilled out between the sharpened jaws, resembling an unholy waterfall of darkness. "If you have nothing else to add, then you should probably leave."

"Amanda, you don't have to do this."

"I told you not to call me that."

"I don't _care_ , goddammit. You don't have to kill just because he told you to." Even with the mask on, she looked legitimately offended by what he had said.

"Is _that_ why you think I'm doing this? God, I'm not doing this just because he told me to. I'm helping people, Chief Miller," she said in exasperation. " _Really_ helping. How many criminals do you allow to walk free? How many murderers get away because there _wasn't enough evidence_ , even if everyone knows that they did it? How many people end up leaving prison and committing crimes again, because you thought they could be _reformed_? It's bullshit, all of it. The whole system is a fucking _lie_!" She turned to look at him. "You know it's true, Chief. Open your eyes. The system isn't working."

"But you don't need to kill. Killing—"

"Don't give me that bullshit," Amanda shot back. "You can say as much as you want that killing will only make me as bad as they are. But there's a difference, see; if I kill, it's for a good reason. They, on the other hand, do it for pleasure. I get _rid_ of people like that. _We_ get rid of scum like that."

"Amanda—"

"Stop saying that!" she screamed at him, her voice horribly distorted by her mask. "Stop fucking _saying_ that! I am _not_ Amanda! Not here, not now, not _ever_ to you. I'm Iron Maiden, goddammit. Iron Maiden."

"Whatever he's been saying to you—"

"He's been saying _nothing_ strange, Miller. You're the one who's trying to manipulate me."

"You're talking about murder like you're just running an errand."

"That's exactly what I'm doing."

"You're talking about killing someone," the man cried. "This… this isn't you!"

"Oh, it's me, alright," Amanda—no, _Iron Maiden_ , said calmly. "People die every day. Car accidents, overdoses, murders… if I kill a couple more, what's the difference? People still die. We still live in this… this kingdom of _bullshit_. All _I'm_ doing is lowering the death toll in the foreseeable future. Tell me I'm wrong, Chief. Tell me I'm wrong, to my face, and say it like you mean it."

Chief Miller was silent. She knew he wanted to, so, so badly. It was on the tip of his tongue. She watched him silently as he opened his mouth to say it, say it to her face... and his expression changed, his face slipping. He put his lips back together, going back to silently staring at her. The Iron Maiden nodded, tilting her head.

"Are you going to try and stop me?" she asked. "Tell me, Chief. Come on." She watched the emotions, the expressions, as they warred for control of his face.

"Will you kill me if I do?" He replied with a question, equally relevant. The Proxy made a gesture with her hand, once to both sides, right and left.

"Not unless I have to," she finally said. "Not unless you force me to do it. Are you going to?" She watched. He did too. She moved, ever so slightly, taking a single step backward. The Chief's hand inched towards his gun. That was all the answer she needed.

The shadow beneath her feet extended, bursting into action as dozens of dark tendrils exploded out of its endless depths. The ground shook, the man stumbling back, hand desperately trying to grab at his gun. The thrashing limbs slammed into the floor, the walls, the ceiling, plaster raining down upon them, spider webs of cracks forming in the walls with each impact. The flood of darkness moved, and Miller ran. Bladed tentacles shot out of the inky blackness, burying themselves into plaster and floorboards alike, gouging large tears into the formerly spotless surfaces. Chief Miller, finally getting a handle on his gun, pulled the trigger repeatedly as he ran backward. The projectiles disappeared in the endless dark, the shadow swallowing them whole as the tentacles continued to reach towards him, undaunted by his retaliation. A new shape pushed itself out of the shadow, a gaping maw filled with rows upon rows of serrated jaws, two blank circles above it where its eyes would have been. It took Miller a few moments before he realized what the face was—and then he was backed up against the door, his hands scrabbling to slide the latch, abandoning his gun to be swallowed by the shadow. He shoved the door open, hurling himself through the entrance before he heard a deafening series of blasts behind him, the entire street suddenly screaming, children crying, men and women stampeding away from the house. Miller, lying on his back, pushed himself up as he groaned in pain.

The front door had been torn from its hinges; it was lying on the ground next to him, scratched and scraped, chunks of it torn out, now scattered throughout the unrestrained grass. Miller stared at the doorway, its paint peeling, the frame torn and broken. The shadow was gone.

He rushed to his feet, running back into the house, unwilling to believe it. Unwilling to accept the fact that Amanda… that Amanda had just done that to him. He searched the hallway, saw the door open, the cool night air flowing into the house. Her footprints were non-existent as if she'd never gone outside. But he knew better.

Miller was silent as he looked back at the house, at the hallway, now torn apart, enormous claw marks engraved into the walls, as if some wild beast had rampaged through it. Amanda had done this. Amanda had released that… that thing, and left. Left with the creature which had worn that face in the shadows. The mask of the Iron Maiden.

 **xXx**

She was admittedly surprised that no one paid much attention to her. Her mask, while unique, was not something that stood out amongst the flood of other costumed people. Serial killers, fantastical creatures, film characters… what was one mask amongst all that?  
Nothing. That was what.

Amanda walked with a purpose, scanning the crowd of faces for the person she was looking for. It would be difficult, considering that most of the people here were wearing masks. But well, she knew several things about her target.

Rob Banks was a tall, brunette male, aged 18 and had last been seen on his social media wearing a gas mask and fake tactical combat gear. That costume happened to be worn by exactly three people at this party, who she had seen dipping in and out of the crowd throughout the course of the party. One of them had taken off his mask and was now gulping down a beer with his friends. That definitely wasn't Rob Banks. And there were still two others roaming around. One currently heading to the restrooms, the other in the middle of a crowd of teens currently gathered around a computer. And he was blonde, so that wasn't Banks either. What they were watching, she wasn't sure, but whatever it was, from the sound of their moans, they were obviously jerking off to it.

Amanda sidestepped two dancing skeletons, weaving in between some sort of fish monster and someone wearing a Voldemort costume. Her hand was down, prepared to catch the knife when she needed it to fall into her hand when she felt the arm around her waist.

She froze. The world kept moving. Another arm. A hand inched upwards, towards her breast. She froze. She couldn't—

"What's up, sweet cheeks? Nice ass." The voice was female, surprisingly, and sounded as if its owner was incredibly drunk. Amanda wrestled against the girl's grip, but her grasp was firm. "Aww, can't have you running, can we? He'd get mad if you did." She felt a shiver creep down her spine.

 _Who the fuck—_

"You want to watch your language there. Too many expletives can't be good for you." Amanda twisted her head around to look at her assailant and froze once more. She was met by a reptilian face, jaws wide, fangs abundant, and two large black eyes staring at her emotionlessly. And there in the center of the mask's right eye, crudely scratched into the glass, was the Operator Symbol.

"Hey, darling. How you holding up?" The mask didn't move as she spoke, but its wearer somehow managed to convey an unreal level of emotion through the way she talked. She felt the hand creeping higher. And then higher.

"Stop." She was aware of how desperate she sounded, how pathetic, but that simple action, the arm snaking around her waist, it had paralyzed her. She remembered waking up in that hospital, seeing _him_ on top of her, forcing himself onto her, _into_ her—

Her shadow got out. Blades and tendrils exploded from the darkness by the dozens, slicing through thin air and costumes, Amanda instantly feeling the lizard girl's grip to be absent as the darkness spread. There were shouts of horror and confusion, people stampeding towards the door as the shadow continued to lash out, its tendrils whipping back and forth in an attempt to find the girl and… and…

 _Crush her burn her kill her yes no don't let her touch me stop touching me—_

"Gotta hand it to you, darling. You're fast." Amanda shakily looked up, her body still stiff as she slowly recovered from her panic attack. Lizard girl was hanging from the ceiling, her hood pulled back to reveal the entirety of the mask. It covered her head entirely, all the way down to her neck at the very least—it continued down to underneath her shirt. The entire thing was covered in yellow and orange scales, a bony crest jutting out of the forehead. The jaws were less jaws and more of a beak full of sharpened teeth, which were now snapping mechanically, even when the girl wasn't talking. On her hands she wore gloves which ended with pointed claws on each finger; those hadn't been there before. Retractable, perhaps? Her feet received similar treatment, claws buried into the ceiling to prevent her from falling. The way she hung, she looked entirely natural, as if she was standing upright. Lizard girl grinned at Amanda, waving nonchalantly as if she hadn't just molested her.

 _You fucking—_

"I told you to watch your language," the girl said, suddenly sounding extremely serious, as costumed partygoers continued to stream out of the house. "And my _name_ ain't Lizard Girl, sweet cheeks."

"Then who the hell are you?!" Amanda screamed. "Who the _fuck_ are you?!"

"How many times have I—oh, fuck it. You're not even listening." The girl sighed, then chuckled playfully. "The name's Sunnyside," she said, accompanying her words with another casual wave. "And I think you know who I am, Amanda. Or should I say, Iron Maiden?" Lizard girl—Sunnyside—began to move, stepping backwards as if she were walking on the ground. "C'mon. I know you recognize it. Come out and say it." There was something about Sunnyside's demeanor that screamed madness—the girl was completely loopy, and it was evident in the way she moved, the way she talked, the way she kept laughing at random moments even when neither of them had said _anything_.

"Are you talking about the Operator Symbol?" she asked, her eyes darting to the bathroom, which she knew Banks had yet to exit from. She struggled to rein in her shadow, which was still pulsing outwards like a flailing jellyfish. "You're with him?"

"You don't need to ask that question, honey," Sunnyside said to her pleasantly. "The Operator… now, he's a little crazy, probably even crazier than me—I know, right? Unbelievable—but the guy knows what he's doing. _Everything_ he does, everything he says, he says it for a reason and most of the time? It's a darn good one. So when Mister Bandage Face tells me that you, Mandy—can I call you Mandy? I think I will—when he tells us you need to go kaput, Mandy dear, he means it. And he means that you need to go for a _reason_. So fuck it all, right, Mandy? You need to die, full stop. And don't look at me like that. You fucking came here to kill someone too. Because he told you, right? We're in the same situation right here."

"If you know why I'm here, you know what Banks did," Amanda rebutted fiercely. "You know that he needs to go. And fuck no, you're not allowed to call me Mandy."

"I'm not?" Sunnyside asked, looking hurt. "But Mandy dearest—oh, fine. Fine, fine, fine. I bloody know what Banks did," she said, and the serious tone returned. "He's a little bastard, isn't he? Fucking hate his kind, believe me. But hell, Mr. O's orders come first, and you know what? When it comes down to you or Banks, I couldn't give two shits about him. You, though? Bandage Face wants _you_." Sunnyside brandished her claws, flicking them upwards—downwards, actually—with glee. "As far as I'm concerned, Banks can go fuck off and live as long as he doesn't get in my way. I'm interested in _you_ , Mandy girl. And not in a romantic way."

"Uh-huh! She's already taken!" Amanda spun to the left as she heard another voice ring out. It disturbed her to know that the girl standing there was one that she had seen, yet hardly paid attention to. She was wearing a red and black dress which cut off at the knees, and a mask which resembled an enormous spider with its legs wrapped around her torso. She wore armored panels on both shoulders, the left of which the Operator Symbol was emblazoned with scarlet paint. The right shoulder panel showed off a glowing red hourglass, with tiny little lines branching off which Amanda assumed to be spider legs.

"And you are…?" Amanda said sarcastically. This had been going on for way too long already.

"Hourglass, at your service!" The girl did a cutesy twirl before bowing deeply. "And how are you, this fine evening?"

"Just so you know," Sunnyside said with a grin, "she isn't crazy. She just thinks it's funny." Hourglass giggled in response, waving up at the girl hanging from the ceiling.

"Hi Sunny!" she said cheerily, teetering over on the edge of her toes.

"Sup, Arach-Kid. You're late to the party."

"Sorry. Traffic was bad." She shrugged. "Halloween, remember? Gets the kids crazy~." Sunnyside chuckled.

"See, Mandy girl? She's not totally insane."

"Whee!" Hourglass said, as if she was _trying_ to prove Sunnyside wrong.

"She tries her best, though," the reptilian faced girl said, continuing on as if Hourglass hadn't said anything at all. "Anyway, as I said, Bandage Face—"

"The Operator wants to kill me, yeah. I'm not surprised," Amanda said drily. "You've said that a couple of times now."

"Well, that's how information sinks in, right?" Sunnyside said cheerily. "But yeah. So, uh, I find that if you ask nicely, people tend to have a higher chance of complying with your requests. So, I was wondering—"

"I don't give you permission to kill me," Amanda said, cutting them off. "Sorry." She eyes Banks as he came out of the bathroom. He stared at the scene in the living room, Sunnyside and Hourglass both turning towards him.

"Oh, why does this always happen?" Sunnyside muttered. "Well, it was nice talking to you, Mandy." Suddenly, the Proxy was falling from the ceiling like a stone, her claws drawn and teeth brandished. Amanda leaped backward, catching the kyoketsu-shoge as it fell into her hand and beginning to swing the blade in a controlled circular motion. Sunnyside landed where she'd been just moments before, her impact accompanied by a loud thud, dust raining from the ceiling. Amanda released her shadow, the tendrils and blades returning from the void to dart out towards Sunnyside and Hourglass. Sunnyside easily leaped over the first lashing tendril, before ducking under the next and rolling to avoid three more burying themselves into the floor behind her. Hourglass held out her arms, aiming the palms of her hands towards the mass of tendrils approaching her—

—and then they slowed dramatically, moving like a man through molasses. Hourglass twirled to avoid the one stray tendril that she missed, giggling as she moved past the ones which were currently being slowed down. Amanda stared in confusion as she tried to move the tendrils; they moved, sure, but they were slow, sluggish as if time was being—

She looked back at Hourglass, who aimed her hands at another group of tentacles, which froze almost completely in place. Immediately, the tendrils she had frozen earlier returned to normal speed, whipping around the chase Hourglass again.

 _Fuck. She can freeze time._

Amanda saw Banks running, his foot getting caught in a hole her tendrils had made in the floor. She released the blade of her kyoketsu-shoge, willing the shadows to guide it towards her target quickly and smoothly. However, before the blade could make even half the distance, she was tackled to the floor by Sunnyside, causing her to tug the chain out of the air. The knife was pulled towards the ground, buying more time for Banks as Sunnyside scratched at Amanda's face. The claws glanced off the metal to little effect, but the impact caused her unprotected skull to slam into the back of the floor, dazing her. Sunnyside's jaws clacked together as she reared her hand back again, but she suddenly jumped backward, moments before Amanda's shadow burst out of her body once more, the gaping maw beginning to rapidly form before Hourglass promptly froze it in place.

The time manipulator dashed forwards, jumping in the air and delivering a scissor kick to Amanda's face. She barely managed to duck underneath the blow before throwing the metal ring up into the air, slamming into Hourglass' back. Sunnyside roared in outrage, speeding towards Amanda throwing a punch at her stomach. The Iron Maiden stepped backward, barely avoiding the thirst blow, but unable to miss the Proxy's follow up attack, which slammed into her shoulder with all the force of a sledgehammer. Amanda cried out in pain as she clutched at her shoulder, the splintered bone spearing into her flesh from the inside out as Sunnyside grinned wickedly.

"Aww, something wrong?" Sunnyside asked. "Did I hit you too hard?" She flung her arm outwards, slapping Amanda's mask. While her claws didn't penetrate, her head was painfully nocked to the side; she felt herself spitting blood onto the inside of her mask. Tendrils began wrapping around Amanda's body, shielding her from Sunnyside's relentless attacks. The Proxy continued to scratch uselessly at the thrashing mass of darkness, whilst Hourglass began to get up, aiming for Amanda's body. Noticing Hourglass' movements, Amanda used her shadows to propel her body away from the two, the ball of writhing tentacles shooting across the room and slamming into Banks just before he reached the door. The teen exploded, his blood and innards painting the floor, walls, and ceiling like a disturbing arts and crafts project. Amanda kept going, her form bursting through the wall and scattering Banks' remains as it went.

The shadows retraced, and Amanda tumbled painfully onto the ground, her arm snapping into an awkward position as the bone ground against itself, splintering even further. Her scream of pain was drowned out as the shadows emerged once more, this time resembling imitations of her kyoketsu-shoge. The knives on chains shot forwards, racing towards Sunnyside and accelerating quickly. The lizard-themed Proxy shot onto the ceiling, grabbing it with her claws in order to avoid the storm of blades. Hourglass blasted the area she was standing on with one of her time fields, effectively preventing herself from being harmed by the blades. The proxy was still moving at normal speed from within the field, as was evident by the way she started speaking.

"That's so unfair," she grumbled as she watched Amanda pathetically attempting to wrench herself upwards with the fence, before falling down to the floor with an earthen thud. "She can _fly_."

"You can stop time," Sunnyside pointed out cheerfully. "You can't really complain. People would die to have an ability like yours."

"Except I was _experimented on_ before I got those powers! This chick was _born_ with them and didn't even know it!"

"Fate's a bitch, huh?" Sunnyside dropped down from her place on the ceiling as Amanda's attack ceased, the blade's no longer flying. Hourglass promptly canceled her time field, allowing the tips of the shadow weapons to dissipate into thin air. "You'd think she'd be harder to deal with, but to be honest, that was pathetic."

"Easy for you to say," Hourglass grumbled. "My back is killing me."

Amanda scrabbled around in the grass, her fingers clenching around uncovered earth and uselessly pulling it free from the ground. The shadows attempted to lift her up, then disappeared only a second or two later. She heard Sunnyside snicker, her shoes plodding against the earth as she and Hourglass emerged from the house.

"How you doing, girl?" Sunnyside knelt down next to her, putting a hand on Amanda's mask. "A little under the weather?" The shadows flickered weakly before dying, reverting to their regular state. "That bad huh? Shit, girl, you look like you've been through hell and back." She traced her fingers along the mask's rim, gently prising it up. "Let me take a look at you. Make sure you're all right." The latter statement was accompanied by a disturbing chuckle, as Sunnyside pulled the mask off Amanda's face, tossing it away in glee as she leered down at her. Amanda tried not to shakes as she felt Sunnyside's claws on her face. The moment she felt the blades slicing into her skin, she knew she'd failed.

"Sh. Sh, sh… quiet. Be still. Don't wanna cut yourself anymore, do ya?"

"Sunnyside." Any trace of the playfulness previously plaguing Hourglass' voice was completely absent. The girl's hands were clenched into fists, shaking irately. "Stop playing around."

"What? I'm just having fun," the Proxy protested before she turned to look at her partner. "What's got you so mad?"

"You promised. You said you wouldn't do stuff like this anymore. You said you'd stop playing with them."

"Humans?"

"You know what I mean. You know _exactly_ what I fucking mean, Sunny!"

"Well, sorry, I guess." Sunnyside withdrew her claws, standing up. "I forgot. Heat of the moment, you know."

"That's complete bullshit. When we started dating, we had an agreement—"

"I'm well aware."

"Then why do you keep doing things like this? Every time, every goddamned time, Sunny. Every goddamned—oh god!"

Amanda's shadow, its strength returned, lashed violently at Sunnyside, the Proxy being flung into the air by the unexpected blow. Hourglass screamed, backing away and raising her arms, poised and aimed towards Amanda. The Iron Maiden, though barely conscious, managed to evade the blast by mere centimeters, as her shadows blasted her off towards Sunnyside. The Proxy was still in the air when Amanda intercepted her, falling down to the ground near the forest. The kyoketsu-shoge propelled itself from within the shadows, racing ahead of the rest of the amorphous mass to stab Sunnyside through the leg. The Proxy, thrashing mindlessly, claws swiping uselessly at the air. Amanda's tendrils braced against the earth, halting her before she could hit the ground. Sunnyside, still hanging from the chain, screamed as her foot was torn off by the whiplash from the kyoketsu-shoge being pulled back by Amanda. The resulting explosion of flesh and blood would have sickened most—the Proxy's foot had been completely snapped off, chunks of meat hanging limply from the bleeding stump. The white bone was shattered, tiny splinters scattered across the ground and embedded into Sunnyside's own leg.

Amanda allowed the tendrils to slowly lower herself to the ground, panting loudly as the shadows began to retract. Her shoulder, whilst not healed, had been numbed of pain by one of Laughing Jack's lifesaving candies. She mentally noted to thank him once she got back home.

Sunnyside pulled her bloody stump towards herself, whimpering a little as her body quivered uncontrollably. Any trace of the cruel and mocking persona she had worn previously had vanished—she looked pathetic. Like a stupid, worthless, utterly _pathetic weakling._ And as she stared at Sunnyside, groaning on the floor, shaking wildly, Amanda realized something. When she had killed those human traffickers, burst Banks open, pierced her blade through Sunnyside's leg and promptly torn off her foot… she'd gotten a rush. It had been brief, sudden. But watching the Proxy suffering? In pain? It was just so…

It was hilarious.

 _She_ thought it was hilarious. Sunnyside was in agony, Hourglass was probably immeasurably worried, and Amanda just stood there, clutching her shoulder. Watching someone suffer and getting pleasure out of it.

 _This is who I am._

She remembered what she'd said to Chief Miller.

 _Oh, it's me, alright._

She hadn't realized how much she'd meant those words when she'd said them—they'd been out of her mouth before she could even consider what she meant. But looking back on them now? She realized. She realized everything. There had been a sense of satisfaction she'd gotten, every time she'd killed. Mixed in with horror, sure, but in the midst of it all, there's been a level of enjoyment which would have disgusted the Amanda of yesterday. The Amanda standing over her prey, the Iron Maiden? She brushed it off like it was nothing.

And she was glad.

"Sunny!" Amanda felt herself smiling when she heard Hourglass calling out, though she refused to turn her back on Sunnyside. And yet, Hourglass would undoubtedly be trying to freeze her in time…

Making her decision, Amanda released her shadow, spikes as dark as midnight exploding from her back like a porcupine, extending further until she resembled an enormous sea urchin. She didn't stop when she felt several of her bladed shadows freeze in place, just kept going, the others accelerating and changing directions to better match the girl's position. Every time Hourglass fired another blast to freeze more tentacles in place, the ones frozen previously would immediately be free of the effect. It was a hopeless endeavor, the tendrils only growing closer and closer towards her with every blast, every strike.

And then the girl changed her strategy—she began to blast the ground beneath her feet, the tentacles reaching towards her caught in the splash effect. She blasted continually, the tentacles slowing whenever they came _anywhere_ close to her. Hourglass strode confidently, no longer hindered by Amanda's attacks, walking forward undaunted. Amanda's shadow retracted back into itself, instead bursting out along the ground in a wall of spikes to block Hourglass' steady advance. Another blast and the wall was frozen before it could grow. The Proxy jumped over the low shadows, blasting the ground again as Amanda raised another row of spikes. The Iron Maiden grabbed Sunnyside, blasting herself upwards again. Nothing but empty air and an enormous drop beneath her.

Some hundred feet or so in the air, Amanda changed her trajectory, dragging a battered Sunnyside behind her as she let out another burst of shadow at an upward angle, shifting directions to where Hourglass stood with hands raised. She let out a blast; Amanda created a wall of shadows in front of her, tanking the blast. Another blast fired off and directed to the spiked tendrils looming over Amanda's temporary barrier. The spikes along the top froze, the rest of the wall withdrawing back into the thrashing mass now racing down upon the earth, tendrils trailing aimlessly and jaws slowly forming between rows upon rows of rippling darkness, eyeholes widening above it like unholy spotlights. The face of the Iron Maiden was back.

It only lasted for a second; a single blast from Hourglass and the center of the mask was frozen, the rest of it flowing over it to make up for it. Amanda directed dozens, hundreds, of blackened tendrils towards the ground, the storm of appendages battering and skewering the earth. Explosions of overturned dust, uprooted plants and grass, grey stones bursting as the tendrils made contact, taking hold, getting a grip. And with every tendril, Hourglass fired, each blast aimed at the enormous black mass, getting closer and closer, blotting out the sky as it spread wider and thinner, each layer frozen another hindrance to it, another obstacle.

Amanda burst off to the side, leaving the dark mass in its place as she raced down one of the tendrils, abandoning the large thrashing eyesore as bait for Hourglass to blast at. The Proxy kept firing, Amanda kept the tendrils going, and as the Iron Maiden reached the earth, raising her hand, the battle was won. From the tendril in which she was located shadows sprouted like vines, twisting and forking in the air like dark lightning and reaching out towards the Proxy, who promptly froze the area around her.

Hourglass danced out of the way of the first strike of lightning, running towards Amanda as the girl shifted to the left, moving the tendril' place and changing with it. Sunnyside's head was dragged along the ground, the Proxy long unconscious since the moment they first blasted off. And then she froze.

Hourglass trembled, stumbling as she walked towards the Iron Maiden's frozen form, Sunnyside, paralyzed next to her, breathing loudly.

"Oh, god," she muttered as she dragged the other Proxy out of the blast zone, carrying her bridal style before running, faster and faster, her bare feet beginning to ache as she raced over the hard ground and sharp stones cut into her skin. And in her arms, Sunnyside was still breathing, her leg still bleeding, eyes remaining closed. Hourglass panted as she left the Iron Maiden behind her. Saving Sunny was more important than killing that bitch anyways. They could get her later. When they had more help. For now, they needed to get home.

And she could use a shower.

 **xXx**

It was almost midnight, and Corey Stanfield was running.

Just ten minutes ago she'd been relaxing in front of the television, feet up and head resting on a comfy pillow. Now she was running for her life.

How things changed…

She tore through the undergrowth, bushes, and shrubs hindering her escape as behind her, she felt the soft pattering of padded feet against the earth, crunching on the blanket of leaves on which they trudged, predator and prey. Corey paused briefly to catch her breath, leaning against a tree and panting heavily. She heard an inhuman growl from the darkness behind her, and then she was running once more.

The growling had been soft at first, barely noticeable among her screams of terror and the ominous sound of footsteps following her. Then, as she had continued to run and the footsteps had become more rapid, the growls had increased in volume. Slowly but surely, until they could have been two feet behind her.

And she never would have known.

Corey had seen the thing chasing her; at first, she had thought it to be a wolf. Then it had appeared to be just a normal, irregularly sized dog. She'd almost slowed down. But then again, a regular dog does not leaves claw marks as deep as the ones in her arms.

She'd raised her arms, trying to defend herself. A single swipe. That was all it had been. A single swipe and her flesh was torn, blood was exploding out of her arms, and that dog… it had smiled. Just smiled. Like it had just rolled over, done a stupid, meaningless trick. That smile… she could still see it.

The dog was there, all of a sudden, a dark blur in a forest full of shadows. Corey screamed, running faster, faster, but the dog matched her speed, its jaws widening to reveal rows upon rows of sharpened teeth. The thing was _toying_ with her. Corey stumbled briefly, her foot catching on the loose root of a tree. It stopped her for less than a second, maybe even less than half. But it was enough.

Before she knew what was happening, she had been knocked onto the ground, her face in amongst the dirt and leaves, the dog's large body effortlessly holding her down as its slobber began to drip onto her back. Corey screamed into the ground, thrashing wildly in a futile attempt to free herself. But the dog remained, staying stock still on her back, growling menacingly as if giving her a warning. The moment Corey stopped struggling, the growling stopped.

 _Fuck. This thing is intelligent._

Feeling the creature's claws pressing down upon her hips and shoulders, Corey gasped out loud when she heard the sound of footsteps slowly approaching them. Though blind, she began to thrash once more, desperately trying to grab the approaching person's attention.

"H-Hey! Help—help me!" The footsteps failed to speed up. Corey felt her hope fading. The dog barked loudly, causing her to jolt in panic as the footsteps suddenly stopped. She was aware that the person was standing mere centimeters from her head.

"You can get off of her, Smile." Corey froze when she heard the girl's voice. It was cold, harsh. Disinterested. "She's not going to escape."

"We've thought so before," another voice said, directly on top of her. Corey jolted again upon realizing that the _dog_ was talking. This was surreal. Far too surreal, it had to be a dream. "We had to chase that one guy from three months ago for another hour before we caught him again. You remember that?"

"The difference here, Smile, is that you've injured her. She'll bleed out anyway if she doesn't die from infection." Smile snorted, but Corey could feel the weight of the dog's body slowly easing off of her. The moment she was freed from the burden, she instantly scrambled up, her heart thumping in her chest as she tried to escape from her two captors. Suddenly there was an immense pain in her shoulder as a knife was plunged into her flash. Corey screamed, limply falling back to the ground on her side, clutching her injured shoulder. She opened her eyes, seeing the mask of the girl standing above her. Plain, white, nothing distinctive. Just… just a mask. "Look at her. She's pathetic. You think she could run?"

"Not in that state," the dog muttered, taking back his point. "But you just stabbed her in the shoulder."

"You're telling me I should have let her get to her feet?"

"Fuck no. I'm telling you that you did _good_ , doing that."

"I appreciate it."

"Fuck you, Chaser. I did all the running. How did you get your name again?"

"I have a cramp, Smile."

"How'd you get that?"

"Slept in a weird position."

"Hah!"

Corey watched, confused, as her two accosters continued to bicker with each other. It seemed almost… almost normal. Like these were regular people. Except that, well, one was a dog, and the other was wearing a mask and had just stabbed her.

"Get it over with then, Chaser. Slit her open."

"You're horrifically graphic, there."

"I like to think I have a good reason, considering the person we just chased down."

"Ah. Very true. Speaking of which…" the girl with the mask turned to her victim. "Hello Corey." The woman shook as the masked girl crouched down to meet her gaze. "I bet you're feeling really confused right now, but don't worry. It's my job to explain everything. Smile is just the one who catches people." Somehow, Corey got the impression that the girl—Kate—was smiling underneath that plain white mask. "You see, we hunt people. Not all people, not _regular_ people. No, we only go after the bad apples. The rapists, the murderers, the drug and sex traffickers… yeah. That kind of human." Corey shook her head.

"I'm just a regular woman. I-I'm a cashier. I'm a bartender on Saturdays—I'm not bad. I'm n—I'm normal." She could hear the shudder in her voice. The shakiness. Evidently, Kate could too. And she knew that she was lying through her teeth. Otherwise, they wouldn't have chased her, would they?

"Corey Stanfield," Kate began. "Aged thirty-two. Worked as a cashier for two years, a part-time bartender for less than six months. Two sisters, one brother." The masked girl paused. "Murderer of seven children." Corey closed her eyes. She knew that she was dead. She'd known the moment she'd tried to run into the forest, and the dog had kept following. There was no way out of this for her. "Aged five to eight, none of them even _teenagers_. Tell me, Corey, why'd you do it? Huh? This wasn't for business. It wasn't for a friend. Wasn't because you had some rage you just needed to dish out, and those kids were just _there_. No. This was _passionate_. I mean, you could have killed them with anything. A gun, a knife, fuck, you could have just run them over. But you _choked_ them. Slowly. So tell me, why'd you do it?" When Corey remained silent, Kate simply sighed, shaking her head. "So it was just for kicks? Just because you wanted to. What about Rob Banks? Why did he help you get rid of the bodies?"

"I don't know a Rob Banks."

"That's bullshit," the dog—Smile—said. "Banks was at the location where the bodies were buried within a five-minute timeframe of the children's deaths. Don't lie. Why'd he help you?"

"It's obvious," Kate muttered. "They were fucking. An eighteen-year-old boy and a thirty-two-year-old woman, fucking. Yeah, I bet he would have gone to the moon and back if you asked him to." Kate reached forward, painfully wrenching the knife out of Corey's shoulder. Corey screamed, her face pale, limbs limp and weak. "The thing about people like you, Corey, is that you're shit. Scum of the earth. We kill people like you, and the public still gasps. But on the inside, they thank us, because fuck, if there's one more murderer dead, then why the fuck should they be sad? Why should they weep?" Kate shook her head. "No, no. They're happy. Pleased, even. And that's how I'm going to feel. When _I_ kill _you_."

Corey didn't try to escape. She only stared. She stared Kate in the eyes, as the girl held the tip of the knife to her throat, preparing to execute her victim. Kate paused, lowering the knife for just a moment, nodding to Corey. An acknowledgment that she had existed, that she had fought, run, tried her best to survive. That whether she was a serial child murderer or a human being, Corey Stanfield had meant _something_ , to someone, to something, to some people. That in her last moments, Corey Stanfield may not have gone down fighting, but she took it without fear.

Smile chuckled. "Well, at least she has balls." And that was the last thing Corey Stanfield heard before Kate plunged the knife into her throat, and the lights went out in her eyes.


End file.
